12th May 2012 - Cairo, Egypt
On 12 May 2012, 40 representatives from 25 officially registered Egyptian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and nine Tunisian NGOs gathered to attend a four-day workshop organized by UNODC, in cooperation with the Egyptian government's Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC), Egypt's Social Contract Centre and Transparency International at the Shepherd Hotel in Cairo, Egypt.
The NGO representatives of the two countries are meeting with a view to exchange experiences in the field of combating corruption.
Dr. Hatem El Kady, Head of Cabinet's Information and Decision Support Center, Dr. Sahar El Tawila, Head of the Social Contract Centre, Ms. Omnia Hussein, Transparency International Regional Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, and Mr. Masood Karimipour, UNODC Regional Representative for the Middle East and North Africa, addressed the participants. Other presenters in the workshop were UNODC experts and an expert from Transparency International.
"The world has admired the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt. The world is now looking to you for inspiration, to see what these revolutions will lead to. Will there be meaningful, sustainable reform in rule of law, justice and development? Will they see more consensus, political will and action to combat corruption?" Mr. Karimipour asked. "Civil society is the cornerstone in any country's successful political, social and economic development. Civil society can also play a crucial role in combating corruption in any country", Mr. Karimipour added.
The overall objective of the workshop was to build the capacities of civil society organizations with regards to United Nations Convention on
Against Corruption (UNCAC) and its Review Mechanism. UNCAC, to which both Egypt and Tunisia are signatories, encourages states to involve civil society in the fight against corruption. UNODC hopes to enhance the relationship between civil society organizations (CSOs) and the Egyptian government in order to establish an effective and cooperative relationship through which CSOs provide the government with suggestions and recommendations to better comply with UNCAC and to better combat corruption in the country.
This event comes in the framework of the anti-corruption project "Supporting Measures to Combat Corruption and Money Laundering, and to Foster Asset Recovery, in Egypt" funded by the European Union.
