Controlling Corruption in Asia and the Pacific

Abstract

Corruption deprives countries of precious resources, hampers efforts to alleviate poverty, undermines political stability and economic growth and diminishes a country’s attractiveness for investment. These negative impacts of corruption on societies and economies have been recognized by Asian and Pacific governments, which over the past few years have engaged in a number of substantial reform projects. The Asian Development Bank (ADB)/Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Initiative supports these endeavors by providing forums for policy dialogue, capacity building, and strengthened understanding, through analytical tools, of the roots and consequences of corruption in Asia and the Pacific, and the potential for evaluating the effectiveness of potential remedies. ADB and the OECD launched the Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia and the Pacific with the aim of supporting Asian and Pacific countries in developing and implementing tangible and sustainable measures to curb corruption. The Initiative’s fourth Regional Anti-Corruption Conference, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in December 2003, provided practitioners and experts from Asian and Pacific governments, civil society, the private sector and the donor community an overview of recent developments in the countries’ legal and institutional anti-corruption frameworks and insights on challenges that lie ahead. Workshops and plenary sessions discussed and evaluated tools and instruments to implement the Initiative’s regional Action Plan.