In a worrying sign for Pakistan’s ability to attract and maintain foreign investment, two prominent manufacturers have announced recently that they are pulling out of the market, citing supply chain concerns including corruption. “Investors are the backbone of any country. Protection of their interests is an important duty of the market regulators,” noted Shariq Zaidi,… Read More
The Chinese government’s crackdown on corruption is more than a passing trend, as evidenced by over $700 million in fines levied on foreign firms in 2014 alone. But enforcement has been largely contained to domestic affairs, despite a law on the books forbidding Chinese companies from engaging in bribery abroad. If Chinese prosecutors were interested… Read More
By Evelyn M. Suarez On November 27, 2014, the World Trade Organization (WTO) was finally able to overcome an impasse created by India in July which prevented implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement reached in Bali in December 7, 2013. As described by WTO Director General (DG) Azevedo, “the impasse related to the political link… Read More
Japan is one of the oldest signatories to the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials — and also one of the worst performing. Since signing the Convention in 1999, the Japanese government has only prosecuted three bribery cases. In addition, the Japanese Diet has yet to ratify the 2003 UN Convention against… Read More
Corruption is a systemic problem that plagues many transitional countries across the world, rooted in weak rule of law and lack of private property rights. Not only does corruption erode trust in public institutions, such practices also hinder economic growth and weaken democratic governance. The corruption challenge can be addressed by building responsive institutions that offer… Read More
The next year is shaping up to be a big one for multilateral free trade agreements and, by extension, efforts to fight corruption in international commerce. First, there is the historic Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) that grew out of the World Trade Organization (WTO) accord reached in December 2013 in Bali. Under the TFA, all… Read More