2015

On July 14th 2015, UNDP and the Government of Italy signed a cost sharing agreement which aims to improve service delivery for the citizens of Albania. This intervention is part of the Government of Albania’s project: “Innovation against Corruption: Building a Citizen Centric Service Delivery Model in Albania” (ISDA) implemented under the leadership of the Minister of State for Innovation and Public Administration.Funding from the Government of Italy, through UNDP, amounts to 265,000 EUR. Another funding of USD 140.000 has already been provided by UNDP.

The project supports the  efforts of the Government of Albania in the area of public administration reform through which the Government is striving to change the way public services are provided, making use of a variety of interventions under a citizen-centric approach to combat corruption, foster a customer-care culture, as well as increase the efficiency of the Albanian public administration.

The project focuses on providing technical assistance, development of a long-term public service delivery strategy and building of the institutional capacities in this area. The project also supports the National Agency for the Delivery of Integrated Services in Albania to become operational and able to oversee the implementation of the service delivery reform. UNDP supports the start-up phases such as developing the framework and building capacities of the Minister of State for Innovation and Public Administration  for the management of the process. Combined with advancements in other key national reform areas including civil service reform, the innovations in public service delivery can fundamentally change how citizens of Albania interact with the state.

UNDP anticipates a larger funding coming from the Worl Bank. This intervention joined today by the Government of Italy, will serve not only as a bridge to the World Bank funding but also supports the establishment of the necessary capacities within the Minister of State for Innovation and Public Administration to manage the challenges posed by this sector.

During the signing ceremony other international partners were called on to join the Government of Italy and the Minister of State for Innovation and Public Administration in pooling their resources to start this reform agenda.

The fight against corruption constitutes one of the five political criteria for Albania’s EU membership. The Government has identified six national strategic priorities, one of which is Innovative Good Governance. At the center of this national priority lies “the citizen-centered service delivery” which is the catch all phrase and approach of the Government towards increasing quality and accountability of public services.

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On July 13th, 2015, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) organized a side event named “Financing for Transformation: From Agenda to Action on Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific” during the Third International Conference on Financing for Development. 2015 is a milestone year, when the international community is expected to adopt a transformative sustainable development agenda for a more inclusive and sustainable future. This requires equally ambitious, credible and forward-looking strategies for resource mobilization. In the Asia-Pacific region, the member States are uniquely placed to implement a transformative post-2015 development agenda because of its vast financial resources.

The objective of the ESCAP in partnership with ADB and UNDP, side event on “Financing for a transformative society in Asia and the Pacific Region” was to provide a focused discussion on innovative financing sources, modalities and priorities in Asia and the Pacific region for the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda. The side event was moderated by Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, Executive Secretary of ESCAP, and included finance ministers from the region, private sector representative and the officials from the ADB and UNDP. Helen Clark, the Administrator of the UNDP, stated, “gains could also be made through strengthening efforts to curtail illicit financial flows. These were estimated at $474 billion in 2012 in Asia-Pacific, accounting for almost half of all such flows from developing countries that year.” She further stated, “fraudulent trade misinvoicing is the largest form of illicit flows, $354 billion dollars in Asia-Pacific in 2012 alone.”  

During the event, ESCAP launched a book “Financing for Transformation: From agenda to action on sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific”. The publication calls for the Asia-Pacific region to work together to raise and channel more substantial financial resources to invest in the social sector, infrastructure development and efforts to tackle climate change in order to ensure a transformative change to bring about inclusive growth and sustainable development.

Click here for full speech by Helen Clark. 

Click here for “Financing for Transformation: From agenda to action on sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific.”

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On July 3rd 2015, the Central Commission for Internal Affairs (CCIA) hosted a dialogue called “Enhancing Mechanisms in Handling Corruption Crimes and in Law Enforcement: International Experience and Lessons Learnt for Viet Nam,” in partnership with the UNDP. Participants were welcomed by Mr. Nguyen Doan Khanh (Member of the Central Party Committee, Deputy Director of CCIA), Mr Li Ming-Chak ( Former Deputy Commissioner of Hong Kong Independent Commission for Anti-Corruption), and Mr. Bakhodir Burkhanov (Deputy Country Director, UNDP Viet Nam). This dialogue was the first in a series of three policy discussions between CCIA and UNDP in 2015. 

Three key points from UNDP’s perspective were described by the Deputy Country Director in UNDP Viet Nam, Bakhodir Burkhanov:

“Firstly, the cleanest countries in the world are tough on corruption, while at the same time respectful of human rights and fundamental freedoms. These must not be competing priorities, but rather mutually reinforcing ones. Getting this right is at the very heart of the Rule of Law.

Secondly, instituting and actively promoting a zero tolerance policy is in itself a strong deterrent. Countries that are successful in curbing corruption send a strong message to all public and private sector actors that corruption is a high-risk crime. Enforcement is obviously critical; all pursuable complaints should be dealt with.

Lastly, community support is essential to success. It is as important as effective institutions and leadership. Anti-corruption is everyone’s business and can no longer be seen as monopoly of the Government. Citizens and communities have a part to play in fostering a culture of integrity, transparency and accountability.”

For more remarks, click here. 

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From 29 to 30th June, UNDP Global Anti-Corruption Initiative (GAIN), in partnership with the Singapore Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), organized a training workshop for a 14-member delegation from the Nepal Commission for the Investigation of Abuse Authority (CIAA). The training was developed following a capacity assessment that was conducted for CIAA Nepal in 2014 which identified the need for capacity development to enhance the knowledge and skills of officers in the investigation of corruption and abuse of authority cases. The delegation attended a training by CPIB on prevention, investigation, case management, risk analysis, polygraph and computer forensic at its headquarters/training facilities in Singapore. The training was followed by a reception at the UNDP Global Centre for Public Service Excellence, where the delegation was welcomed by the Head of the Nepal Mission to Singapore, Mr Madhusudan Muljibhai Patel.

The delegation left for Malaysia on 30^th of June to participate in further training facilitated by the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC) and the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Academy. UNDP GAIN looks forward to continuing this cooperation in a proactive manner and is confident that the CIAA, with the support of UNDP, will create a pool of trained investigation experts, who can further train new staff members of CIAA.

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