Majuro: Endorsement of an Outcomes Statement

PRESS RELEASES:
17 February 2011

[Majuro- 17 February] Today in Majuro, at the conclusion of a national workshop on the UN Convention against Corruption, Members of the Marshall Islands Nitijela (National Parliament) endorsed an Outcomes Statement which called for commencement of the national process to progress accession to UNCAC.

The Outcomes Statement concluded the two-day workshop which brought together officials from the Ministry of Finance, Attorney General’s Office, Audit Office, Public Service Commission and Chief Secretary’s Office, and was facilitated by the UNDP Pacific Centre. The workshop was notable for its whole of government approach, which recognized that corruption is multi-faceted and must be addressed by a range of stakeholders.

The Nitijela itself recognized the role that it can play in promoting public accountability. Senator Frederick Muller, the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee stated that: “The Public Accounts Committee is an important oversight committee of the Nitijela which examines reports from the Auditor and investigates whether monies allocated to Government ministries was spent as the Nitijela intended. We can also propose measures we think are necessary to ensure that public monies are properly and economically spent and duly accounted for, as Article 9 of UNCAC requires.”

Recognizing that leakage of public funds is a key corruption issue, Senator Muller stated: “The PAC strives to protect the resources of the Government for the benefit of all citizens. As with other legislative committees, we see support to strengthen our capacity to effectively carry out our functions and protect the public interest and public monies.”

Representatives from civil society and the private sector were also involved in the workshop.

Speaking in relation to UNCAC Article 12 which specifically deals with the private sector’s role in combating corruption, Mr Stephen Phillip, head of the RMI Chamber of Commerce, observed, “We can recognize that one of the fundamental obstacles that continues to thwart business development is the seemingly pervasive acceptance and condoning of corruption in all its forms.”

Mr Stevens went on to note that “One of the Articles [of UNCAC] goes to detail about how important it is to have all public finances disclosed in a transparent fashion…Were this to have occurred long ago, I doubt that we would be experiencing some of the problems that threaten the private sector.”

UNCAC was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2003 and came into force in 2005. UNCAC is the first comprehensive framework endorsed by the international community, and represents a groundbreaking global consensus. It has already been ratified by 148 out of 193 UN member states, but in the Pacific, only Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Palau have ratified the Convention. Vanuatu’s Parliament endorsed accession to UNCAC in late 2010. If accession proceeds, Marshall Islands will be the fifth Pacific Island to take this important step towards greater public accountability.

ENDS

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