International Anti-Corruption Day: common message from anti-corruption structures and organizations

2023-12-18 07:49:06

Unite the world against corruption.” This is the ambition set by the United Nations, through the commemoration, this year, of the International Anti-Corruption Day, December 9. This day coincides with the twentieth anniversary of the United Nations Convention against Corruption to which our country is a party. It aims to highlight the crucial link between the fight against corruption and peace, security, as well as development.

Indeed, since 2015, Burkina Faso has been facing the most serious crisis in its post-independence history with the phenomenon of terrorism which is rife in several regions of the country. Despite the efforts of those in power and the sacrifices made by the Defense and Security Forces to regain territorial integrity, the attacks continue to leave families in mourning and provide fertile ground for corruption to progress. At the end of March and the end of May 2023, Burkina Faso recorded respectively 2,062,534 internally displaced persons (IDPs), according to CONASUR, and 6,149 closed schools affecting more than a million students, according to the Technical Secretariat of Education in emergency situation.

At the same time, corruption spares no sector of activity. This is evidenced by data from the Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perception Index. In 2022, our country obtained a score of 42 points out of 100; the same as in 2021. Even if this score has improved compared to 2020 when it was 40/100, it is clear that Burkina Faso is still far from the average of 50 points out of 100. Furthermore, the 2021 report on the state of corruption from REN-LAC, published in December 2022, indicates a continuous increase in the phenomenon of corruption in our country over the last six years. According to the synthetic corruption perception index (ISPC), which measures the perception of Burkinabè on the frequency and evolution of the phenomenon, the level of corruption has seen a substantial increase of 30 points, from 41 points in 2016 to 71 points in 2021.

Curiously, at the head of this sad list of manifestations of corruption are the rackets perpetrated by uncontrolled elements of the police, in particular the municipal police, whose actions resemble an affront to the promotion of the values of integrity and probity to which the authorities of the Transition continually call. It is in view of this situation that the ASCE-LC and its partners decided to commemorate the day of December 9, 2023, at the national level, around the theme: “The fight against corruption, an integral part of the fight against terrorism” .

Corruption clearly has a negative impact on state security and stability. “It fuels, as the United Nations declaration on this occasion underlines, conflicts and hinders peace processes by undermining the rule of law, worsening poverty, by facilitating the illicit use of resources and by ensuring the financing of armed conflicts. »

It is therefore a constant that public institutions weakened by deeply rooted corruption are not only less effective in their sovereign role, but also create favorable conditions for the expansion of armed terrorist groups. Studies have even highlighted a positive correlation between corruption and political and institutional instability. Terrorist organizations and criminal networks generally take advantage of corruption in institutions such as the Army, Police and Justice which are pillars of state security and the rule of law to prosper and carry out their activities. harmful with impunity.

Moreover, in our country, corruption and certain forms of trafficking (fuel, cigarettes) have been highlighted as part of a set of elements that fuel terrorism and cross-border crime.

In this context, only a resolute and sincere fight against corruption can guarantee our country success in the fight against terrorism. This is why we agree with the United Nations that “fighting this crime is the right and responsibility of everyone, and that it is only through the cooperation and involvement of every person and institution that we can overcome the problem. negative impact of this crime. States, government officials, civil servants, law enforcement officials, media representatives, the private sector, civil society, academia, the public and young people all have a role to play in uniting the world against corruption”.

Together, let’s create this national dynamic to push terrorism beyond our borders.

Happy commemoration of International Anti-Corruption Day.

Have signed :

– The Higher Authority of control d’Etat et of Struggle against the corruption (ASCE-LC)

– The National Network fight anti-corruption (REN-LAC)

– The Free Africa Institute

– The Center for Democratic Governance (CGD)

– Young Leadership for peace and development (LEJEPAD-BURKINA FASO)

– The Burkinabè Youth Network Leaders for Integrity (RBJLI)

– L’Association Manag-bzanga (AM-BURKINA)

– The Observatory for Lustice and Democracy (OJD)

– The Ciné Droit Libre festival