News & Blog

An entrepreneur and vocal supporter of anti-corruption Collective Action, Norwegian-born Vibeke Lyssand Leirvag has two interesting perspectives: as a small business owner in Thailand and as Chairwoman of the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce. In this short interview on the sidelines of the Basel Institute’s International Collective Action Conference, Vibeke explained how engaging in a Collective Action initiative can help make the voice of business – whether an SME or a Chamber of Commerce –

By Oscar Caipo Ricci, President of the Empresarios por la Integridad initiative in Peru. The initiative is a member of the Basel Institute’s Mentoring Programme and recently became the national hub of Alliance for Integrity in Peru. _Speaking at the Basel Institute’s [International Collective Action Conference](https://collective-a

By Lisa Miller, Head of Integrity Compliance, World Bank Group. Speaking at the Basel Institute’s International Collective Action Conference on 25–26 June 2024, Lisa Miller explained why preventing fraud and corruption is essential for development banks like the World Bank Group to achieve their missions – and how engaging in Collective Action with other stakeholders can help. Video file

We are delighted that anti-corruption Collective Action with the private sector, government and civil society is included as a strategic priority in the Joint Communiqué of the 21st International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) High-Level Segment in Vilnius, Lithuania. The High-Level Segment of the 21st IACC convened on 19 June 2024 under the theme "Confronting Global Threats: Standing up

An interview with Nicola Bonucci by Lucie Binder, with input from Mirella Mahlstein and Anna Stransky. Our Collective Action Helpdesk has received several queries about the European Union (EU)’s introduction of two similarly named pieces of legislation: the [Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive](https://finance.ec.europa.eu/capital-markets-union-and-financial-markets/company-reporting-and-auditing/company-reporting/corporate-sust

The Basel Institute’s President Peter Maurer opened the 5th International Collective Action Conference on 24 June 2024 with an inspiring keynote speech about global challenges related to corruption and the role of Collective Action in addressing them. Setting out the current state of affairs, Peter Maurer highlighted disruption, instability and deep transformation of relations between states, international organisations and non-sta

Gemma Aiolfi led the Basel Institute’s Compliance and Collective Action work for many years, working closely with our late Managing Director Gretta Fenner as well as our former President Mark Pieth to transform private-sector engagement in the fight against corruption. At the 5th International Collective Action Conference on 24 June 2024, Gemma spoke of Gretta’s passion and efforts over the yea

Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Anti-Corruption Collective Action Awards, presented by the Basel Institute on Governance with the support of the Siemens Integrity Initiative. The awards were presented on 25 June 2024, at the end of the first day of the International Collective Action Conference 2024 in Basel, Switzerland. You can watch part of the ceremony [here](https:

Public procurement is a notorious risk area for corruption and other unfair business practices all over the world – including in Bulgaria, where diverse stakeholders are now coming together to find a practical solution to corruption risks in public tenders that works for all parties. One solution they are discussing is a High-Level Reporting Mechanism. In essence, this is a channel to raise and quickly resolve alerts about suspected bribery or unfai

Public voting has opened for this year’s prestigious Collective Action Awards. Launched in 2022, the Collective Action Awards celebrate inspiring and outstanding multi-stakeholder initiatives to raise standards of business integrity in a particular context. Two award categories are available: “Outstanding Achievement” and “Inspirational Newcomer”. Following the public vote, this year’s awards will be presented at the [5th International Colle

Paris is known as the city of love. But once a year, during the OECD Global Anti-Corruption Forum (GACIF), it also becomes the beating heart of integrity – at least for the anti-corruption community. Under the theme “Designing our future with integrity”, this year’s Forum brought together anti-corruption experts from business, government and civil society from around the world to explore trends in the fight for integrity and against corruption. Amid the

Business integrity was among the priority topics at the 10th session of the Conference of the States Parties (CoSP) to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) in December 2023. For the first time ever, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) together with the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) hosted a Private Sector Forum in the margins of CoSP10. Serving as a partner of the Forum, the Basel Institute welcomes the UN’s efforts to bring businesses to the table on

Nominations are now open for the International Collective Action Awards 2024. Launched in 2022, the prestigious Collective Action Awards celebrate inspiring and outstanding multi-stakeholder initiatives to raise standards of business integrity in a particular context. Two award categories are available: Outstanding Achievement in Collective Action 2024: Organisations and initiatives that have made significant contributions towards fairer

This blog was originally published on the FCPA Blog, which was discontinued in February 2024. 2023 was a mixed bag for the business integrity community. On the one hand, the B20 – the voice of business of the G20 forum of major economies – had no Integrity & Compliance Task Force under the Indian Presidency. That was a major missed opportunity for all of us who care about raising standards of business integrity around the world. The B20 Integrity & Compliance [Task Force](https://collective-

As we expand our efforts to support Collective Action against corruption in Latin America, Private Sector Specialist Andrea Prieto takes stock of existing initiatives in the region. She and representatives from some of the initiatives discussed the Collective Action approach to fighting corruption in Lima, Peru at the Eighth Integrity Week organised by Alliance for Integrity. También disponible

A medida que ampliamos nuestros esfuerzos para apoyar la Acción Colectiva contra la corrupción en América Latina, Andrea Prieto, especialista en el sector privado, hace un balance de las iniciativas existentes en la región. Ella y representantes de algunas de las iniciativas discutieron el enfoque de Acción Colectiva para combatir la corrupción en Lima, Perú, en la Octava Semana de la Integridad _or

We are pleased to see States embracing the business community in corruption prevention activities in Africa. At a recent anti-corruption conference in Rabat, a new declaration emphasised the importance of the "involvement of all stakeholders, with a shared vision and an action based on collective mobilisation…”. This language underlies the Collective Action approach that we at the Basel Institute have long promoted to increase standards of integrity and fair bus

A high-level meeting of heads of anti-corruption agencies in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) last month was a chance to take stock of member countries’ efforts to tackle corruption. The meeting allowed for a reflection on many ongoing activities and discussions around Collective Action in the region this year. It was the perfect opportunity to reflect on how to galvanise joint efforts aga

“Fighting corruption has to be a collective effort. No single stakeholder can do it alone. Government cannot do it alone, or the public administration. If only citizens are left to fight corruption, they will struggle. And the private sector likewise.” – Gretta Fenner, Managing Director, Basel Institute on Governance Effectively combating pervasive corruption in Bulgaria requires sustained, collective efforts by the government, the business sector, civil society and individual citizens. And t

Asia and the Pacific are expected to contribute to around 70 percent of global growth in 2023 – but sustaining this economic development in the face of environmental and social challenges will be tough. Business integrity, transparency and collaboration are key. That is why we applaud the numerous initiatives that have blossomed throughout the region, bringing together sta

This event has now passed. See short takeaways and quotes. A high-level forum in the Bulgarian capital Sofia on 10 October 2023 will focus on Bulgaria’s efforts to strengthen integrity, transparency, accountability and open government through Collective Action and the active participation of the business sector. The in-person event (with live streaming) is aimed primarily at govern

Dernièrement, l’Afrique de l’Ouest a connu une forte croissance économique et des investissements directs étrangers. Pourtant, elle perd aussi des milliards de dollars en flux financiers illicites, dont la corruption est une composante majeure. L’éradication de la corruption est essentielle pour attirer les investisseurs et favoriser le développement durable. C’est pourquoi l’Action Collective pour la lutte contre

West Africa is experiencing a surge of economic growth and foreign direct investment. Yet it also loses billions of dollars in illicit financial flows, of which corruption is a major component. Rooting out corruption is essential to attract investors and foster sustainable development. This is why anti-corruption Collective Action – jointly tackling corruption issues through multi-stakeholder initiatives with the

Nominations are now open for the Asia-Pacific Collective Action Award 2023. Launched in 2022, the Collective Action Awards celebrate inspiring and outstanding multi-stakeholder initiatives to raise standards of business integrity in a particular context. This is our second regional Collective Action Award this year. In early June, CoST Uganda – the Ugandan arm of the global Infrastructure Transparency Initiative – won our [Southern Africa Co

“Collective action and meaningful engagement with local and international civil society organisations, business, professional associations, and international organisations also may help enterprises to better design and implement effective enterprise anti-corruption policies and mitigate corruption risks one enterprise cannot mitigate individually.” "Both home and host governments should […] consider fostering collective action initiatives with private and public sector representatives

The Wolfsberg Group’s recent updates to its renowned Anti-Bribery and Corruption Programme Guidance for financial institutions has made quite some waves. In part, the interest is due to the practical value of the Guidance for financial institutions seeking to comply with anti-corruption legislation and mitigate risks of bribery and corruption throughout their operations. It is also due to

Across Southern Africa, leaders from the business community, civil society and government are coming together to strengthen business integrity and thus catalyse the region’s huge economic potential. That groundswell of multi-stakeholder action – anti-corruption Collective Action – was on display on 31 May at the Southern Africa Anti-Corruption Collective Action Forum. The Forum mark

Business integrity is vital to the health of the vibrant economies of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as of the companies based or seeking to do business in the region. Fostering trust and transparency through Collective Action between stakeholders – local businesses, foreign investors, governments, civil society – is key to advancing a strong culture of business integrity, levelling the playing field and solving practical challenges that hold back fair busines

Gemma Aiolfi is an international expert in anti-corruption compliance and a driving force behind the development of private sector-led Collective Action. Gemma helped to establish the Basel Institute on Governance in 2003 alongside Professor Mark Pieth. She served as the organisation’s Head of Compliance, Corporate Governance and Collective Action from July 2013 until October 2022, when she transitioned to the role of Senior Advisor. _In

Business entities wishing to implement projects funded by Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs, also referred to as International Financial Institutions) will be interested to know that six major MDBs have agreed and published new General Principles for Business Integrity Programmes. Such programmes play an important part in the MDBs’ efforts to fight fraud and corruption in the projects they finance or otherwise support. _These General Principles provide non-exhaustive, non-binding guidance