UN Guide for Anti-Corruption Policies - United Nations Office on ...

<strong>UN</strong>ITED NATIONS CONVENTION AGAINST CORRUPTION
Article 1*
Statement of purpose
The purposes of this Convention are:
a) To promote and strengthen measures to prevent and combat corruption more efficiently
and effectively;
b) To promote, facilitate and support international cooperation and technical assistance in the
prevention of and fight against corruption, including in asset recovery;
c) To promote integrity, accountability and proper management of public affairs and public
property.
* <strong>UN</strong> CONVENTION AGAINST CORRUPTION
Background
Member States of the <strong>United</strong> <strong>Nations</strong> have successfully finalised the <strong>United</strong>
<strong>Nations</strong> Convention against <strong>Corruption</strong>. Negotiations were concluded in
Vienna on 30 September 2003 after two years of deliberations, The
Convention marks a major step <strong>for</strong>ward in international cooperation against
corruption has been included in the introductory part of this <strong>Guide</strong>.
References to specific provisions of the Convention have been added
throughout the <strong>Guide</strong> on <strong>Anti</strong>-<strong>Corruption</strong> <strong>Policies</strong> where appropriate.
The first session of the Ad Hoc Committee was held in January 2002. At its
first and second sessions, the Committee concluded the first reading of the
draft Convention. At the third and fourth sessions, the second reading was
completed. At the fifth session, in March 2003, the Committee reached a
preliminary agreement on a significant number of provisions.
The sixth session lasted a week longer than the previous five, including night
sessions. After a debate lasting through to 3:50 a.m. on Saturday, 9 August
2003, delegates from the 128 Member States decided to continue working on
the Convention on <strong>Corruption</strong>’s final details in a short, three-day seventh
session, which concluded on 1 October, 2003.
Substantive Highlights of the Convention include:
Prevention. <strong>Corruption</strong> can be prosecuted after the fact, but first and
<strong>for</strong>emost, it requires prevention. An entire chapter of the Convention is
dedicated to prevention, with measures directed at both the public and private
sectors. These include model preventive policies, such as the establishment
of anticorruption bodies and enhanced transparency in the financing of
election campaigns and political parties. States must endeavour to ensure that
their public services are subject to safeguards that promote efficiency,
transparency and recruitment based on merit. Once recruited, public servants
should be subject to codes of conduct, requirements <strong>for</strong> financial and other
disclosures, and appropriate disciplinary measures. Transparency and
accountability in matters of public finance must also be promoted, and specific
requirements are established <strong>for</strong> the prevention of corruption, in the
particularly critical areas of the public sector, such as the judiciary and public