Tema-Ghana, July 14, GNA – Stakeholders in the fight against corruption have noted that the commemoration of the 20th Anniversary African Union Day against corruption offers Ghana a period for introspection, particularly when the country is said to have stagnated in its fight.
Among the causes attributed to the current economic challenges facing the country are increasing corrupt practises and other global developments, the stakeholders stated in a statement.
The statement, which is to mark the 20th anniversary of enacting the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (AUCPCC), is on the theme of “AUCPCC, 20 Years After: Achievements and Prospects.”
The Ghana stakeholders in the fight against corruption statement was jointly signed by Mr. Edem Senanu, Member, African Union Advisory Board on Corruption (AUABC); and Mrs. Mary Addah, Acting Executive Director, Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII).
Others are Dr. Kojo Asante, Director of Programmes and Policy Engagement – Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana); and Mrs. Beauty Emefa Narteh, Executive Secretary at the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC).
According to the statement, this momentous occasion provides stakeholders across the continent—state and non-state actors—a unique opportunity to take stock of the gains made while considering the debilitating effect of corruption on the economic growth and development of the 55-member states of the union.
The stakeholders noted that at the national level, the shared objective is to encourage all in the anti-corruption space to use the occasion and subsequent weeks and months until the end of 2023 to organise events aimed at amplifying national strategies to stem the tide of corruption and enhance the country’s integrity systems.
The statement acknowledged that Ghana is one of the 48 African countries that has so far signed onto the AUCPCC and ratified it as a covenant it subscribes to.
To demonstrate the country’s commitment to the convention, Ghana has complied with most of the articles of the convention and has proceeded within the context of the AUCPCC to develop the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP) to guide and strengthen anti-corruption activities within the country.
The stakeholders noted that what remains, however, is the domestication of key aspects of the convention, including criminalizing illicit enrichment (introduction of reverse burden of proof), diversion of state property, and conflict of interest, as part of the country’s Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), and other anti-corruption legislation.
“Ghana’s framework on Asset Declaration which is regarded as below expected best global standards, would have to be reviewed to incorporate verification and stricter sanctions for non-compliance,” the stakeholders stated.
“On behalf of the good people of Ghana, we call on the Executive and Parliament to work towards passing the Conduct of Public Officers Bill into law in order to enhance the fight against corruption in Ghana.
“We also call on all NACAP implementing partners to report back to the
NACAP Secretariat on activities they implemented in the year 2022 to rid their institutions of corruption. It is not encouraging to note that only 50 agencies reported on their activities in 2022.
“We use this occasion to call on all stakeholders to re-commit themselves to the fight against corruption. We want to emphasize that we can win the fight against corruption if we join forces and work together—citizens, CSOs, Media, Private Sector, Government, and academia,” the stakeholders stated.
The stakeholders in the fight against corruption noted: “We appeal to the government to display stronger political will and allocate adequate funding to
bolster the effectiveness of all Anti-Corruption Institutions.
“We use this opportunity to emphasize that corruption remains a reality and to encourage Ghanaians to revisit our cultural values that prohibit corrupt conduct.
“We are convinced that African countries, such as Ghana, can use African models and solutions to tackle and overcome corruption if we employ research and an evidence-based approach in crafting the strategies that will define our policies and programmes over the next two (2) decades,” the stakeholders said.
