Corruption, whether bribery, money laundering or the abuse of power, causes enormous damage across the Commonwealth and the world.
Corruption, whether bribery, money laundering or the abuse of power, causes enormous damage across the Commonwealth and the world. In June 2022, the Office of Civil and Criminal Justice Reform (OCCJR) held launched a new tool to assist the implementation of the Commonwealth Anti-Corruption Benchmarks. This tool is the Audit and Implementation Roadmap, designed to enable any user to track and mark a country’s progress against any of the 25 Benchmarks. The Benchmarks themselves are the Commonwealth’s premier effort to provide governments and citizens with practical, comprehensive, and measurable steps to fight corruption.
Francisca Pretorius, Head of the OCCJR, was joined for the virtual launch by two expert users of the Benchmarks and the Roadmap. Farzana Nazir-Mohammed, the Director of the Criminal Justice Unit in the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs, Trinidad and Tobago, is leading the implementation of several key Benchmarks in her country and employing the Roadmap to support her work. Neill Stansbury, Co-Founder and Director of the Global Infrastructure Anti-Corruption Centre, is an author of both the Benchmarks and the Roadmap.
The discussion explored the potential implementation pathways for the Benchmarks and how the Roadmap can offer assistance, as well as empower users to critically examine existing anti-corruption frameworks. Mr Stansbury provided expert guidance on the structure and potential of the Roadmap.
Speaking about the importance of the benchmarks, Ms Nazir-Mohammed shared details of her work employing the Roadmap to implement certain Benchmarks in Trinidad and Tobago. She said:
“The benchmarks and roadmap are groundbreaking and unique publications in the anti-corruption sphere. The Benchmarks provide clear and concise guidelines on how to identify and treat the various methods through which corruption may occur, specifically within the public sector. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the Commonwealth for going above and beyond to ensure a successful start to the implementation of the Benchmarks in Trinidad and Tobago… it cannot be denied that these Benchmarks are another arsenal with which our objectives may be achieved.”
The OCCJR welcomes enquiries about the Commonwealth Anti-Corruption Benchmarks at [email protected].
See a recording of the webinar
Media contact
- Rena Gashumba Communications Adviser, Communications Division, Commonwealth Secretariat
- T: +44 7483 919 968 | E-mail
