June 14, 2021

Call for International Anti-Corruption Court: a welcome move

topic:	Transparency and Corruption
editor:	Bob Koigi

Each year, the world loses an estimated $2.6 trillion, the equivalent of 5 percent of the global GDP, to corruption, with businesses and individuals paying over $1 trillion in bribes.

It has become an entrenched culture that has thrived across public and private sectors. 

Beyond the numbers, corruption has had devastating impacts on crucial sectors, including health, education, human rights, global peace and security. 

These effects are felt particularly by the poor and the powerless, and have been blamed for the widening gap between the rich and the poor. 

Yet, this kleptocracy has continued unabated as influential government officials subvert the rule of law to plunder their countries’ resources with impunity since they control the administration of justice.

The International Monetary Fund estimates that tackling corruption could help the world generate approximately $1 trillion in tax revenue annually, which would help nations, especially developing ones, meet some of their most pressing problems.

The recent decision by over one hundred world leaders drawn from more than 40 countries to sign a declaration advocating for the establishment of an International Anti-Corruption Court is therefore a timely and welcome move. 

This historic development would put government officials with a history of plunder of public resources on notice, restore trust in public service, create a strong institution that would punish and prosecute the corrupt and enforce recovery and repatriation of the illicit funds. 

Furthermore, as long as this ambitious initiative remains on paper, global heads should demonstrate leadership by expediting the process of setting up the court and giving it muscle and teeth in order to save the global economy from further haemorrhage.

Image: Daniel Lane. 

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