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Governance and Transparency

 

 (i) Introduction

 

During the past year Cambodia made its first appearance on several international rating systems: Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index and the World Economic Forum Growth Competitiveness Index to name two, Cambodia ranked near the bottom on both of these. In addition, a team of international technical advisors, approved by the Ministry of National Assembly-Senate Relations and Inspection (MoNASRI) to provide technical assistance on the draft Law on Anti-Corruption, has recently assessed that the draft law is below international standards and will not meet the monitoring indicators agreed upon in last years CG meeting. Given these findings and promises from the government to make the fight against corruption an essential party of its Rectangular Strategy, it is disconcerting that the draft Law on Anti-corruption, currently before the Council of Ministers, fails to meet international standards.

 

 (ii) Key Issues

 

   Transparency and Corruption: The RGC recognizes that corruption is a common, pervasive and destructive phenomenon and has made fighting against it as part of the heart of its rectangular strategy to promote growth, employment, equity and efficiency.  For the first time, Cambodia has appeared on Transparency International‘s Corruption Perception Index, ranking 130 out of 158.

 

   The Anti-Corruption Law and Political Will: An Anti-Corruption Law that meets international standards has not yet been passed despite government’s pledge to do so in the last year’s CG meeting.  International experts, including the United Nations Office of Drug and Crimes which houses the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, have concluded that the draft law as released to the public in November 2005 is below international standards and will not fulfill the monitoring indicators set by the government in 2004. Few corruption cases have made it to the courts.

 

   Public Administration Reform: The reform and streamlining of public administrations are often undertaken for reasons other than combating corruption, and many examples of useful programs can be found in the work of the development agencies of Governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. Reforms undertaken for other purposes will usually be consistent with the additional goal of reducing the opportunities for corruption and, in many cases, will have anticorruption elements specifically incorporated.

 

   Independent and Effective Auditing:  Responsible management of public funds builds trust between citizens and government. Audits provide a check and balance against corruption and public audit reports increases government transparency.  For an audit authority to be effective, it must be independent.  Although the National Law on Audit passed in 2000 provides appropriate stipulations for an independent NAA, some external factors hinder this independence.  The law mandates that the NAA develop and manage its own budget, but the Ministry of Economy and Finance, whom the NAA audits annually, approves its budget and disburses the funds monthly.  Although an article in the law asserts that reports issued by the Auditor General are public documents, subsequent articles provide exceptions that have resulted in no publicly available audit reports to date.

 

   Financial Disclosure: The principle of disclosure can also be effectively applied to the making of political contributions. Disclosure ensures that such contributions are legitimate attempts to support a particular political faction and not attempts to bribe or buy influence with politicians who are already in government or may later assume power.

 

 (iii) Recommendations

Recommendations for the RGC:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recommendations for International Financial Institutions and Donors:

 

 

 

Recommendations for Civil Society:

 

 

 

For more information on the issues raised in this paper, please contact:

The Center for Social Development (CSD)/Mr. Heav Veasna, Managing Director

Tel: (855) 23 364 -735, Fax: (855) 23 365 736

Email: csd@online.com.kh website: http://www.online.com.kh/users/csd

 

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