Anti-corruption leaders in the Asia-Pacific region gathered in Seoul on 15 September to declare their determination to fight corruption and work together to help build the capacity of anti-corruption agencies in the region.

 

At the 5th Anti-Corruption Agency Forum, or ACA Forum, representatives from 10 anti-corruption agencies reaffirmed their common understanding that corruption is a global issue threatening the social and economic growth of many parts of the world by "distorting fair competition and impeding the efficient allocation of resources."

 

In the "Seoul Statement" adopted on that day, the participants concurred "that strengthening the role and enhancing the capacity of anti-corruption bodies is essential to the effective resolution of corruption problems and that it is vital to promote collaboration among anti-corruption entities."

 

They agreed to cooperate with one another to support the development and implementation of policies aimed at increasing transparency and accountability in each country, and to make every effort to provide one another with training programs on the best practice anti-corruption measures and disseminate those measures.

 

Among the best policy instruments cited in the Statement are: the Profiling the Public Sector Research Paper of Australia, Ethics Development Centre of Hong Kong, China, Multimedia Tools for Public Education and Campaign of Indonesia, Integrity Survey of Korea, and Anti-Corruption Academy of Malaysia.

 
During the meeting, the ACRC, which serves as the secretariat for this meeting, unveiled its plans to support the exchange of anti-corruption policies and other cooperative activities between member agencies.

 

In 2010, an official website of the ACA Forum will be launched so that member agencies can share best practices and exchange information and data on anti-corruption policies and institutions.

 

The Secretariat will act as a bridge between the agencies that are willing to offer technical assistance and those that are interested in receiving such assistance.

 

It will also send Forum members e-mail newsletters on a regular basis to help keep them updated on the Forum's activities, recent anti-corruption initiatives undertaken by other member agencies, and related news and notices.

 

The 5th ACA Forum brought together about 30 participants from 5 member agencies--the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption of Australia, the Independent Commission Against Corruption of Hong Kong, China, the Corruption Eradication Commission of Indonesia, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission of Korea, and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, and 5 observer agencies—Anti-Corruption Commission of Bhutan, Anti-Corruption Bureau of Brunei Darussalam, the Office of the Ombudsman of the Philippines , the National Anti-Corruption Commission of Thailand, and Government Inspectorate of Vietnam.

 

With the Office of the Ombudsman of the Philippines applying for membership at the meeting, the ACA Forum will consist of seven anti-corruption agencies of Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore.

 

The next forum will be held on 2 November 2010 in Sydney, Australia, prior to the National Investigations Symposium co hosted bi-annually by the ICAC, the NSW Ombudsman and the NSW Division of the Institute of Public Administration.