Vienna (Austria), 11 December 2024 - The 2013 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) publication An Anti-Corruption Ethics and Compliance Programme for Business: A Practical Guide was developed to bring together existing guidelines and related material on standards for private sector anti-corruption compliance based on the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), providing more practical information for businesses of all sizes, as well as real cases from various parts of the world. Years later, the business environment has changed, with companies being required to not only be more accountable, ethical, transparent and inclusive, but to also address their impact on the environment and societies, while contributing to the public institutions, laws and systems where they operate. Many new principles and guidelines have also been developed, including new approaches such as the Transformational Governance approach developed by the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact) and its participating companies. This raises the need for current comprehensive guidance on business integrity, a key takeaway from the Private Sector Forum held at the tenth session of the Conference of the States Parties (CoSP10) held in December 2023 in Atlanta, USA, prompting UNODC to embark on updating the 2013 practical guide on anti-corruption ethics and compliance programmes for business.
Anti-corruption measures in the private sector are a crucial factor for strengthening integrity in public procurement, as they allow companies to prevent and manage unethical behaviour and corruption issues during the different stages of the procurement process. Where companies have anti-corruption measures in place, a level playing field is created that encourages fair competition and ensures the quality and delivery of goods and services. International anti-corruption instruments and commitments have long recognized the importance of private sector engagement in preventing and combating corruption, including in public procurement. It is therefore in the interest of governments to craft a careful mix of sanctions and incentives for business integrity to strengthen anti-corruption efforts in the private sector.
Bearing this in mind, UNODC, in collaboration with the UN Global Compact, held two days of informal multisectoral consultations on 15 and 16 October 2024 in Vienna to discuss various topics of interest that would feed into the update of the 2013 practical guide, as well as enable the development of a paper with good practices and recommendations on incentives for public procurement. The consultations allowed to advance the discussions and exchange of experiences on the development of effective frameworks to provide incentives for the private sector to adopt integrity measures related to public procurement, a key topic raised by participants at the Private Sector Forum at CoSP10 and a priority States confirmed with the adoption of resolution 10/12 . As a result, the new "A Resource Guide on State Measures for Strengthening Business Integrity" was produced by UNODC, the UN Global Compact and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
On 15 October, the informal consultation was held with representatives from the Think Lab for Business Integrity - a private sector thought leadership group comprised of 26 companies - established by UNODC and the UN Global Compact. This session was the third consultation in 2024 on updating the 2013 UNODC practical guide, building on earlier sessions in May and June. The Vienna gathering brought together 35 representatives from the private sector, alongside representatives from international organizations, civil society, academia and governments. The discussions revolved around various key topics relevant to the updated practical guide, including measuring the impact of anti-corruption programmes, public reporting on anti-corruption ethics and compliance programmes, anti-corruption collective action and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and technology in compliance programmes.
The consultation session on 16 October focused on incentives for business integrity in public procurement. Participants from the private sector, governments, civil society, academia and international organizations shared good practices, challenges and lessons learned on developing incentives for promoting business integrity in public procurement and assessing corporate anti-corruption ethics and compliance programmes as a basis for granting incentives in public procurement processes.
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Increasing incentives for the private sector to adopt integrity measures to prevent and combat corruption is a priority of resolution 10/12 adopted by the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption;
A Resource Guide on State Measures for Strengthening Business Integrity
B20 Integrity & Compliance Task Force in 2024
