B20 Anti-Corruption Summit

B20 China (2016)

There was no B20 Anti-Corruption Taskforce during the Chinese Presidency in 2016. Instead, a B20 Anti-Corruption Forum was held, which resulted in an Anti-Corruption Policy Paper. The taskforces in 2016 were: Trade and Investment; Infrastructure; Employment; Financing Growth; SME Development. The G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group also published a new Action Plan for 2017–2018.

B20 recommendations

Excerpts from the B20 statement or policy document on anti-corruption in this B20 cycle.

B20 2016 Anti-Corruption Policy Paper

Excerpts:

Strengthening intergovernmental cooperation against corruption, and supporting the building of capacity for stronger anti-corruption compliance.

Recommendation 1: Encourage stronger international anti-corruption cooperation to foster sustainable growth.

Encourage stronger international cooperation in the enforcement of anti-corruption laws, including those that have been adopted in accordance with international conventions and related G20 High-Level Principles.
Continue to encourage more dialogue between government and business in an effort to promote better understanding of best practice in anti-corruption – both in the public and private sectors.

Recommendation 2: Promote a more transparent environment for business in an effort to bolster competition.

Work together with business to promote beneficial ownership transparency and ensure better adherence among the private sector to the new policies and regulations.
Promote integrity in public procurement by adopting transparent e-procurement systems and - encouraging best practice in effective corporate compliance programs.
Support transparent electronic customs clearance pilot programs to reduce the risk of corruption and promote trade.
Ensure that Whistleblower protection laws are in place and effective, and consider introducing provisions to reward Whistleblowers for reporting corruption and other wrongdoing.

Recommendation 3: Support capacity-building to enable stronger anti-corruption compliance efforts. In summary, both businesses and governments need to implement training and compliance programs that build capacity and recognize ethical behaviour within their work force. Responsible employers are already doing this, but inconsistent regulation among G20 countries complicates the compliance process and leads to higher costs.

Bolster incentives for companies to both build best-practice compliance programs and self-report compliance breaches.
Provide companies, SMEs in particular, with training programs and toolkits to identify and address third-party risk management and compliance.

G20 commitments

Excerpts from the G20 leaders’ statement relevant to anti-corruption.

G20 Leaders’ Communiqué - Hangzhou Summit 2016

Excerpts:

More Effective and Efficient Global Economic and Financial Governance

Financial transparency and effective implementation of the standards on transparency by all, in particular with regard to the beneficial ownership of legal persons and legal arrangements, is vital to protecting the integrity of the international financial system, and to preventing misuse of these entities and arrangements for corruption, tax evasion, terrorist financing and money laundering.

We call on the FATF and the Global Forum to make initial proposals by the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in October on ways to improve the implementation of the international standards on transparency, including on the availability of beneficial ownership information of legal persons and legal arrangements, and its international exchange.

Recognizing the detrimental effects of corruption and illicit finance flows on equitable allocation of public resources, sustainable economic growth, the integrity of the global financial system and the rule of law, we will reinforce the G20’s efforts to enhance international cooperation against corruption, while fully respecting international law, human rights and the rule of law as well as the sovereignty of each country.

We endorse the G20 High Level Principles on Cooperation on Persons Sought for Corruption and Asset Recovery and welcome Chinese initiative to establish in China a Research Center on International Cooperation Regarding Persons Sought for Corruption and Asset Recovery in G20 Member States, which will be operated in line with international norms.

We commit to continue the G20 Denial of Entry Experts Network.

Consistent with our national legal systems, we will work on cross-border cooperation and information sharing between law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies and judicial authorities. We call for ratification by all the G20 members of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption and welcome the launch of the second cycle of its review mechanism.

We will endeavor to apply effectively the extradition, mutual legal assistance and asset recovery provisions of the above Convention and other applicable international conventions.

We endorse the 2017-2018 G20 Anti-Corruption Action Plan to improve public and private sector transparency and integrity, implementing our stance of zero tolerance against corruption, zero loopholes in our institutions and zero barriers in our actions.

We ask the Anti-Corruption Working Group to develop an implementation plan before the end of 2016 as a flexible framework to carry this work forward with renewed high-level attention and urgency. We also welcome outcomes of the London Anti-Corruption Summit in May 2016 and the OECD Ministerial Meeting in March 2016.

G20 Action Plan

Some short description of G20 action plan

G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group Action Plan 2017-2018

Excerpts:

Private sector integrity and transparency:

We will continue to work closely with business and civil society in tackling corruption.

The G20 will explore means of promoting a culture of integrity and supporting private sector anti-corruption initiatives, including for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and in the nonfinancial professional services sector.

We will encourage stronger partnerships, consistent with national law, between governments, anti-corruption authorities, regulators, law enforcement, financial intelligence units (FIUs), business and civil society.