Director-General/Executive Director
Your Excellency Mr. Alexander Van Der Bellen,
President of the Federal Republic of Austria,
Distinguished guests,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my honour to welcome you to this high-level event commemorating the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention against Corruption - the UNCAC.
At the outset, I would like to thank President Van der Bellen for being here today, and for always being a shining symbol of Austria’s commitment to the United Nations and its values.
I also want to thank all of you for joining us to mark a major milestone in the history of the UNCAC.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime is proud to be the guardian of the Convention, and your partner in its implementation.
For two decades, the UNCAC has stood as a resonant global commitment to fight corruption, and as a highly effective platform to carry out that fight.
It was here in Vienna, in this very building, where the UNCAC was negotiated 20 years ago.
The world united around a common vision for integrity, transparency, and accountability, affirming the role of our host country Austria as a global center for responsible and constructive multilateralism.
And now, it is here in Vienna where we gather once again to renew our commitment to the UNCAC, and to reflect on the path ahead.
It is a chance to unite around a universal cause, at a time of deep global division.
Excellencies,
The fight against corruption underlies much of what the Member States of the United Nations are working for, and much of what connects them.
Anti-corruption is enshrined in Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goal 16, and our efforts to counter corruption are pivotal for achieving every one of the SDGs.
At the SDG Summit in September, Member States recognized the importance of fighting corruption as part of their urgent efforts to accelerate the SDGs.
The fight against corruption is a fight for clean and effective investment in public goods and services; a fight for justice and equal opportunities; a fight to leave no one behind.
It is also a fight for peace, security, and stability, a fight against practices that fuel conflict, facilitate organized crime, and enable the financing of terrorism.
And as we mark 75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, alongside the 20th anniversary of the UNCAC, we must underline that the fight against corruption is part of the fight for human rights.
Accountability, integrity, and transparency are essential safeguards to protect the values of democracy, preserve the rights of everyone, and prevent breakdowns in the rule of law.
As our global framework in the face of corruption, the UNCAC is vital for shared global aspirations.
Distinguished guests,
We have come a long way since the adoption of the UNCAC 20 years ago.
Today, the Convention is the only legally binding international instrument against corruption with near-universal membership.
With the ratification of Barbados earlier this month, the number of Parties has reached 190. That is very close to the number of Member States of the United Nations.
On our path to reaching this point, there have been major milestones that advanced the Convention’s goals.
The establishment of the UNCAC Implementation Review Mechanism was one such milestone, allowing countries to get a global picture of anti-corruption and to benchmark progress.
Since its inception in 2010, the review mechanism has uncovered many good practices, as well as more than 9,000 implementation gaps and 4,000 technical assistance needs.
It has had measurable impact, leading to legal and institutional reforms, improved domestic and international cooperation, and enhanced engagement with the private sector and civil society.
Another significant milestone was the Special Session of the UN General Assembly against Corruption in 2016, which recognized the importance of anti-corruption as a cross-cutting enabler of the broader development agenda.
Today, we are building on those milestones as foundations for progress.
To bring our anti-corruption expertise closer to our Member States, we have decentralized our anti-corruption technical assistance and advisory services by establishing five regional anti-corruption hubs.
We have also created eight regional anti-corruption platforms, connecting practitioners from 63 jurisdictions to promote South-South cooperation and exchange of good practices.
Our experience working with States Parties has also allowed us to identify specific corruption challenges that require focused support.
We are providing specialized technical assistance to address whistleblower protection, gender dimensions of corruption, preventing corruption in sport, advancing anti-corruption education, and more.
International cooperation is at the heart of the UNCAC, and UNODC is supporting two flagship initiatives for greater cooperation: The Global Operational Network of Anti-Corruption Law Enforcement Authorities, or GlobE Network, and the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative, which we implement together with the World Bank.
Excellencies,
The UNCAC has transformed the landscape of global anti-corruption efforts, and today States Parties have the tools at their disposal to step up those efforts.
In doing so, we must always look ahead to the most urgent priorities on the horizon.
Our planet is facing an existential threat in climate change.
We must prevent corruption from diverting the financing needed to respond, and from enabling the destruction of our carbon sinks.
There are also persistent and emerging threats in the fight against corruption that require greater attention.
Corruption and organized crime continue to feed each-other, and a more integrated approach is needed.
Cryptocurrencies are making it much more difficult to trace financial transactions and combat money-laundering.
And the integrity of public finances remains a challenge, one that needs more collaboration between supreme audit institutions and anti-corruption authorities.
Last but not least, I want to underline the importance of being inclusive and amplifying every voice that speaks up against corruption.
This includes the voices of civil society, academia, and the private sector, and it includes the voices of women, who bring vital perspectives to the table.
Crucially, it also includes the voices of young people, who have the optimism, energy, and fresh ideas we need to take real steps forward, and I am so glad to see a member of UNODC’s YouthLED Advisory Board joining the high-level speakers today.
I look forward to your intervention Serena.
Ladies and gentlemen,
In a few weeks, the United States of America will be hosting the tenth session of the Conference of the States Parties to UNCAC in Atlanta.
As we mark 20 years of UNCAC and other global milestones, as we face an extremely complex global situation, and as we urgently look to restore hope in multilateralism and rescue the SDGs, this Conference will be a window of opportunity.
I hope that States Parties, and all our partners, will engage constructively with the Conference, to advance the fight against corruption and to rally around the UNCAC.
In a world that yearns for unity, we need to seize this opportunity and stand united against corruption.
Thank you.