BASSETERRE, St. kitts - WITH the 8th Annual Conference of the Commonwealth Caribbean Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies ongoing in the Federation, the Executive Director of the St. Kitts-Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce is reminding of the issues posed by corruption on private sector entities and the development of people across the region.
CIC’s Executive Director, Kevin Hope articulated at the recently held opening ceremony that “money lost to corruption is development denied to those who need it most”, since corruption is viewed as a tax on the poor.
He supported that position by outlining that, “Corruption and weak governance in general undermine government revenues, resulting in poor infrastructure and hinder the pace of poverty reduction”, while pointing out that it also contributes to “inequalities in access to education, health, infrastructure and other productive assets”.
Though corruption is often evident all across the world, it is more prominent in Small Island Developing States where laws are not as strict, and where politicians either refuse to grant access to public information for scrutiny or deliberately install persons in various positions so that they can flout laws.
Hope reminded that the World Economic Forum estimated that the global cost of assets stolen due to corruption is at roughly $2.6 trillion per year or five percent of Global GDP, which is the same amount needed by SIDS to fight poverty.
In that regard, Hope noted that corruption is a symptom of poor governance. Thus, poor governance and corruption carry both a social cost and a real economic cost, and it is the poor and vulnerable who inevitably bear the brunt.
Taking an organisation’s view, the Executive Director charged that corruption “impedes business growth, escalates costs and poses serious legal and reputational risks” for those who are affected, also raising “transaction costs, undermines fair competition, impedes long-term foreign and domestic investment, and distorts development priorities”.
In the Federation, the Government had passed legislation at the national level, focusing primarily on Public Officials, but last year it was revealed that much of the work of the Integrity in Public Life Commission was stalled because of the lack of legislation to operationalise the work of the Committee.
There is no legislation focusing on the integrity of officials within the private sector. And the Chamber takes an overarching view on the topic.
Speaking to the broader perspective, Hope pointed to advocacy, where he noted that the private sector has a responsibility to voice concerns at any “sign of corruption and unethical work practices by elected and private sector officials”.
He also called for more training on the UN Global Compact, which highlights that “Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery”.
Meanwhile, the Executive Director called for all to support initiatives to fight corruption, such as those presented at the opening ceremony, in order to “strengthen governance and anti-corruption practices within our firms and organisations and work with companies that have ethical business practices”.
