Bangkok, Thailand, 30 November 2021 - Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on public health and economies worldwide. The vast amounts of money needed to respond to this crisis, relaxed oversight and accountability deficits have created conditions for corruption to thrive. A UNODC study of the conditions under which emergency funds were issued across Southeast Asia similarly concluded that corruption risks were likely to be exacerbated as a feature of the pan-demic. UNODC activities in Southeast Asia have looked at how procurement reform, oversight mecha-nisms and health sector measures can be used to break the link between the pandemic and corruption.
In Thailand, a lack of accountability and the role of the pandemic in worsening economic hardship and strengthening police enforcement powers have been cited as factors in recent corruption scandals. As current chair of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Thailand is set to prioritize economic connectivity and trade over 2022, furthering the importance of financial transparency and anti-corruption measures.
To progress cooperation on anti-corruption activities, on 30 November 2021, Mr. Jeremy Douglas (UNODC Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific) met with Mr. Niwatchai Kasemmongkol (National Anti-Corruption Commission Secretary General), to sign a letter of agreement between the two organizations.
The letter of agreement, signed at a ceremony held at the Office of the Na-tional Anti-Corruption Commission of Thailand (NACC), pledged to establish a partnership for the joint organization of anti-corruption capacity development and awareness raising initiatives, in line with the implementation needs laid out through the United Na-tions Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).
Recent UNODC anti-corruption activities in Thailand have included training on forensic accounting, a workshop on best practices for executive leaders of Thai public au-thorities, and a regional webinar on ways to strengthen law enforce-ment integrity. The details of upcoming events will be published on our website.
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