News & Blog

There is a strong business case for Collective Action against corruption - and more and more companies, law enforcement agencies, international organisations and civil society representatives are willing to engage. Which is good, because we need all players around the table to achieve sustainable change. These were key recurring messages during the Basel Institute’s 3rd International Collective Action Conference, which

The official launch of the Tainted Assets Initiative took place on 15 November 2018 at the Basel Institute on Governance’s Conference on Collective Action. This event marks the formation of the Project’s secretariat at the Basel Institute. With the support of the OECD Secretariat, this multi-stakeholder initiative aims to develop a practical resolution mechanism to enable companies and countries to address historic “tai

The Basel Institute on Governance is pleased to launch two new resources on the High Level Reporting Mechanism (HLRM) as a corruption prevention tool. The HLRM concept was jointly developed by the Basel Institute, OECD, and Transparency International in response to private sector concerns over the absence of quick and effective mechanisms for addressing bribe solicitation by some public officials in certain markets. An HLRM is a way for governments to demonstrate their high-level

Our programme of work in Malawi, led by the International Centre for Asset Recovery with funding support from the UK Department for International Development, has been expanded to complement its original focus on corruption investigations and the recovery of stolen assets with prevention components. These include assistance with a review of the national anti-corruption strategy, fresh engagements with the private sector and training on research methods and corruption risk assessment

The Basel Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate with Colombian authorities to adapt and apply a High Level Reporting Mechanism (HLRM) to prevent corruption and promote fair competition in tenders related to the building of the City of Bogotá’s First Metro Line. The signing ceremony held on 6 August 2018 in Bogotá was one of the final acts by Colombia’s outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos on his last day in office and the day that marked the 280th ann

The Basel Institute’s International Centre for Collective Action completed its second of two workshops convening select Siemens Integrity Initiative Integrity Partners and other Collective Action Initiatives in Basel, Switzerland from 27 to 28 April 2018. The aim was to promote peer learning and to identify success factors and strategies for overcoming common challenges facing anti-corruption Collective Action Initiatives. The workshop consisted of plenary sessions where participants presented

The Metals Technology Industry (MTI) Anti-Corruption Collective Action Initiative has recently expanded its membership. Tenova S.p.A. has joined the three founding members of the Initiative: Danieli & C Meccaniche S.p.A., Primetals Technologies Limited and SMS GmbH - in their anti-corruption Collective Action efforts. Tenova S.p.A. is a leading mechanical engineering company for the steel and non-ferrous metals processing industry headquartered in Castellanza, Italy. The MTI Collective Action

The Basel Institute has recently been appointed to facilitate a new sector-specific Collective Action initiative for the banknote industry. Initial collaborative discussions on the process forward for this initiative has been on-going for a couple of months. These discussions have laid the necessary consultative foundations for the initiative to fully take off in 2018. The kick-off of this new initiative underscores the increasing acceptance of the relevance of a neutral facilitator role to be

E-government generally refers to the use of information and communication technologies to transform relations between citizens, businesses and various branches of government, and includes for example; e-procurement, e-customs, e-tax filing and e-sourcing.  By reducing personal contacts between companies and government officials the scope for arbitrary decision-making, bureaucratic delays and the attendant opportunities for bribery are theoretically diminished. In a report on New perspectives in

The International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) extends its activities into teaching on an institutional level. As of January 2018, ICCA experts will provide teaching modules on initiating and managing Collective Action for professionals at the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) in Laxenburg, Austria.  Our ICCA experts have agreed to teach within the framework of the newly

The Basel Institute has been a longtime partner of the B20 anti-corruption working groups, and during the German Presidency has actively supported the Responsible Business Conduct and Anti-corruption work of the B20 by contributing to the development of the final recommendations. These were officially handed over to German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel in May. The B20 Recommendations were set out in a report that identified some of the most pressing global issues, which included infrastruct

The Basel Institute, one of the founding members of the Board of the World Economic Forum Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI), participated in this year’s Spring meeting of the World Economic Forum Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (WEF PACI). The event focused on sharing views on how to rebuild trust and integrity in business and government. PACI’s work is driven by the active participation of its community including the PACI Vanguard Board. Key takeaways included: A dec

Experts of the Basel Institute developed a specialised training on governance of state owned enterprises, anti-corruption prevention and Collective Action for a group of government officials from Uzbekistan.  The programme, which was delivered at the Basel Institute’s headquarters in May, was tailored to the requirements of the participants and was based on a combination of theory and best practices with case examples and practical exercises. The participation of a range of internal and external

On May 3rd, 2017, the B20 officially handed over its Policy Recommendations to German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin. The anti-corruption recommendations include calls to establish beneficial ownership transparency, as well as to recognise corporate compliance efforts, as the Chair Klaus Moosmayer said "combatting corruption must be a joint effort that addresses both the supply and the demand sides of corruption.” Finally the Working Group called for enhanced responsible business conduct in

On Wednesday, 19 April 2017 the Basel Institute in cooperation with Norton Rose Fulbright hosted an insightful discussion as to how to develop a successful anti-corruption Collective Action with peer companies or other stakeholders and how Collective Action can invigorate anti-corruption programmes in markets with systemic corruption. Recent examples of Collective Action were discussed, including the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, the Banknote Ethics Initiative and the Tainted

Experts from the Basel Institute’s International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) contributed to the specialised training of officials from Egypt’s Administrative Control Agency, the country’s anti-corruption body. The training, which took place from 12 to 16 February 2017, was organised by the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Regional Bureau for Arab States in partnership with the Arab Anti-Corruption and Integrity Network (ACINET) and the Ministry of International Cooperation i

For the first time, the Basel Institute on Governance, in partnership with C5, is inviting the Swiss anti-corruption and compliance community to discuss cutting-edge risk mitigation strategies at the Anti-Corruption Switzerland Conference in Zurich from 28 February to 1 March 2017. This premier anti-corruption and regulatory compliance event has been developed by leading industry professionals and aims at providing all attendees with the best platform for networking as well as sharing and disc

The Basel Institute on Governance and its International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) hosted an international conference on anti-corruption Collective Action with almost 200 participants from the private sector, government, international organisations and civil society. The conference took place on October 20-21, 2016 in Basel and was part of the B20 efforts to promote Collective Action in anti-corruption.  This year’s edition was organized under the theme Collective Action: Evidence, Expe

The Basel Institute on Governance and its International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) hosted for the second time an international conference on anti-corruption Collective Action, entitled Collective Action: Evidence, Experience and Impact on October 20-21 2016 in Basel. The conference was part of the G20/B20 anti-corruption agenda aimed at identifying mechanisms that may effectively prevent bribery of public officials and support companies’ efforts to resist bribery and extortion. The eve

The Basel Institute on Governance and its International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) will host for the second time an international conference on anti-corruption Collective Action entitled Evidence, Experience and Impact on October 20-21 2016 in Basel. The conference is part of the G20/B20 anti-corruption agenda aimed at identifying mechanisms that may effectively prevent bribery of public officials and support companies’ efforts to resist bribery and extortion. 2016 has again seen numer

The Global Fund is an international financing institution that seeks to accelerate the end of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics. The Geneva-based organisation has selected the Basel Institute on Governance to serve as Integrity Monitor for the procurement of long-lasting insecticide nets (LLINs) financed by the Global Fund. The role of the Integrity Monitor is to facilitate transparency and accountability in the LLIN bidding and registration process, as well as to identify and promote

The Collective Action Initiative for the Metals Technology Industry (MTI) brings together the three leading companies in the metals technology industry Danieli & C. Officine Meccaniche SpA, Primetals Technologies Limited and SMS GmbH. The International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) at the Basel Institute has accompanied the MTI since its inception in 2013, and has been working with the group to improve and develop their anti-corruption programs. The ICCA acts as the chair and facilitator

Earlier today the Government of Panama jointly with the Basel Institute on Governance announced the establishment of the country’s first High Level Reporting Mechanism (HLRM). The launch event was led by the Vice President of Panama, Ms Isabel de Saint Malo de Alvarado and by Ms Angelica Maytin Justiniani, Director General of the National Authority of Transparency and Access to Information (ANTAI) and attended by some 100 people, including members of the Panama government and business community

Experts from the Basel Institute’s International Centre for Collective Action (ICCA) were in Kigali, Rwanda on 25-27 January to support the country’s Office of the Ombudsman in developing Collective Action strategies for public-private sector cooperation to tackle corruption. To kick-start this process, a workshop on the topic was held on 26 January in Kigali, preceded by preparatory meetings with the Office of the Ombudsman and the Private Sector Federation, the latter being an umbrella organi

The ICCA was represented in panel discussions during two Game Changer sessions at the September 2015 edition of the International Anti- Corruption Conference (IACC) in Malaysia. The first session addressed efforts from the private sector to promote transparency and integrity, with a focus on Latin America and the Caribbean. The High Level Reporting Mechanism experiences in Colombia were highlighted in this regard. The second session, entitled “Collective action: mission impossible or a way to

The Basel Institute on Governance and Blomeyer & Sanz have been commissioned by Transparency International (TI) to conduct a Learning Review of Integrity Pacts (IP), a tool used in many countries for preventing corruption in public contracting. The Learning Review builds upon the findings of an earlier study conducted by Blomeyer & Sanz in Spring 2015 on IP experiences in Europe. It aims to provide an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the IP approach, lessons learned from experience

The Basel Institute on Governance, together with its partners, the United Nations Global Compact and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Developement (OECD), has been awarded a three-year funding of nearly USD 4 million under the second funding round of the Siemens Integrity Initiative. The funding will support the continuous development of the B20 Collective Action Hub as well as the High Level Reporting Mechanism in G20 countries in a project entitled "Scaling up anti-corruption Col

In mid June the ICCA of the Basel Institute hosted the third session of the Africa Roundtable. Companies from a variety of industries discussed the options that Bilateral Investment Treaties present for the private sector and the pros and cons of using arbitration to address the unfair treatment of business in certain countries. The next meeting will be scheduled in the third quarter of 2015.

The Basel Institute supported the 5th International Ethics Summit ‘Understanding Today, Inspiring Tomorrow’, hosted by the Turkish organisation TEID in Istanbul on 17 June 2015. The conference was dedicated to discussing how concepts such as responsible citizenship, sustainable production, innovation, ethics and reputation can be integrated into a successful company alongside making profits for shareholders. Some 250 interested participants from the

The ICCA was invited to take part in an OSCE seminar on “fostering co-operation in corruption prevention between government and the private sector” in Chisinau, Moldova from 28-30 April. The event brought together over 50 senior and mid-level anti-corruption professionals from Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, experts from international organizations, Europe and the United States, to address co-operation in corruption prevention between government and the private sector. During this 3-da