Dear Editor
FOR quite some time there has been constant public discourse and accusations about bribery and other corrupt practices taking place at some of the entities that make up the public sector.

It would be safe to point out that corruption is a problem all over the world and not only at the Public Sector level but at the Private Sector, the International inter-governmental organization, the international development organization and the non- governmental organization levels.

Research has shown that the following industries rank very high on the Corruption Indexes as per the United Nations Classification.
#1. Extractive re: mining, Oil and Gas.
#2. Construction re: infrastructure projects that are awarded via a bidding process or single sourced.
#3. Transportation and Storage re: at the enforcement level and
# 4. Information and Communication re: suppression of or access to, information is money and acting on non-public information.

In this general statement, I would like to highlight by a brief rough note item#1, because of its current status in our country re: the extractive industry; the industry covers mining (gold, diamonds and other minerals) and the drilling etc etc for the winning of Oil and Gas.
It is a historical and current perception that because of the nature of the business, it lends itself to corruption. Companies  (local and international ) search for valuable deposits all over the world  and they then set out getting the permits from various governments and officials at the national, regional and local levels to explore and develop the deposits or blocks; the officials at the various levels can make the getting of the deposits or blocks more or less difficult. Research has shown that whenever it becomes difficult to obtain the permission, a number of companies (local and international) seeking to obtain the permission may choose to pay bribes in order to access the deposits or blocks. There is also a feeling that the bribes paid would turn out to be only a small fraction of the expected profits and hence it makes economic sense to do it.

Please note that the opportunity to pay bribes also presents itself at the activity of extraction.
In addition to the discourse and accusations about bribery and other corrupt practices, there is a very strong feeling in some quarters (local and international) that there are significant gaps in the management of corruption risks (bribery/ corruption, etc, etc ) and this situation has existed at the public sector and other levels because there is a lack at most entities of an anti- bribery / anti-corruption policy ( AB/AC ) and its companion, an Anti- Corruption Compliance Program (AACP).

In any well-regulated society, it is a generally accepted principle that the policy makers, the board of directors and the senior management of the entity are responsible for the design of an anti-bribery /anti-corruption (AB/AC) policy and it’s companion, an Anti- Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP) and for conveying a very strong message that corruption will not be tolerated.

There are a number of entities that make up the public sector, a great percentage of these entities provides valued ($) services to companies, etc ( local and international ) that operate in those industries that rank very high on the corruption indexes and in order to give these entities a chance to put in place systems to manage its corruption risks, I would like to suggest that the policy makers, the board of directors and the senior managers set about to consider and  do the following.

#1. The design and implementation of an Anti- Bribery / Anti- Corruption Policy (AB/AC ) which should outline acceptable and non- acceptable behavior and it shall be based upon the requirements of our local laws ( Integrity Commission Act ; Fiscal Management and Accountability Act ; the Audit Act and the Criminal Law Enforcement Act ); The USA Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ( FCPA ); The UK Bribery Act 2010 (UKBA); The Organization for Economic Co- Operation and Development (OECD ) ” Good practice guidance on internal controls, ethics and compliance “and Canada’s Corruption and Foreign Public Officials Act ( CFPOA ).

The Laws emanating from (FCPA, UKBA, OECD and CFPOA) are extensively used by organizations (governmental and non-Governmental ) throughout the world as standards for the development of their Anti- Bribery /Anti-Corruption Policies ( AB/AC)
# 2. Design and put in place an Anti- Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP). In order for this to be done, one should evaluate the corruption risks of the entity. This is essential because an effective compliance program should be tailored to the entity’s specific activities and risks associated with those activities; to evaluate the corruption risks a corruption risk assessment should be undertaken; the identification and analysis of risks through a risk assessment activity adds both efficiency and creditability to an organisation’s program. In addition, it is felt that if it is done professionally and properly, that the findings could be used to allocate scarce resources to the most urgent risks. The guidance for designing the Anti- Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP ) should come from the

corruption risks assessment and the broader Anti- Bribery /Anti- Corruption Policy (AB/AC).
The compliance program should be part of the entity’s overall internal control system. The internal control system should cover accounting procedures; transactions review and approval; controls around bank accounts;  approval of vendors; tendering ,evaluation and awards; procurement and the payment process; There should also be increased focus and scrutiny on the high corruption risks areas ( divisions, departments and sections ).
The internal control system should include a mechanism for employees and the public to report actual or suspected misconduct or violations of the Anti-Bribery/ Anti- Corruption Policy (AB/AC) . This should be done on a confidential basis without fear of retaliation. These reports should be handled appropriately and should include formal written standard statements. They should be lodged into a reporting system, assigned, investigated, closed and reported to the head of the entity–the policy makers and the board of directors re: ( whistle blowing system/ whistle blowing laws)

To facilitate the work and examination of the internal control system, the entity should have an internal auditing section staffed with qualified internal auditors, accountants, etc. The internal auditors, accountants, etc, would have to be trained in certain particulars of the local laws as per Integrity Commission Act ; Fiscal Management and Accountability Act ; The Audit Act and The Criminal Law Enforcement Act  ) . They would also have to be

familiar with and have a sound working knowledge of the USA Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ( FCPA); the UK Bribery Act 2010 ( UKBA ); the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development ( OECD ) ” Good practice guidance on internal controls, ethics and compliance” and Canada’s Corruption and Foreign Public Officials Act ( CFPOA )
It is expected that the entity would have a legal department or have the ability to buy in legal services because the application of laws, etc, would be an integral part of testing the compliance of various elements of the compliance programme.

In addition to the training of the internal auditors, etc, it is essential for all policy makers, directors, managers, senior officers and employees to receive training on the elements and the intended workings and application of the Anti-Bribery / Anti-Corruption Policy (AB /AC).
All managers and officers engaged in high-corruption risks areas (divisions, departments and sections) should receive dedicated and focused training on compliance as it relates to Anti- Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP).

As part of the Internal Control System, the entity should design and put into place a Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct should reference the Anti-Bribery /Anti-Corruption Policy (AB/AC)  and the Anti-Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP). The Code of Conduct should apply to all employees, directors, contract employees and private contractors who provide services to the entity Since the Code of Conduct references the Anti- Bribery/Anti- Corruption Policy (AB/AC) and the Anti-Corruption Compliance Program( ACCP) they should be included and defined in the Code the following:
(A). Bribery, Corruption, Kickback.
(B). Facilitation Payments.
(C). Conflict of Interest.
(D). The Protection, Care and Use of the Entity’s Assets.
(E). The Treatment of Confidential Information.
(F). The Giving and Acceptance of Gifts, Entertainment and other Favours and
(G). The Use of Computers and other Electronic Resources to commit crime.
The Code of Conduct should address the question of violations of the standards as set out in the Code and should have clear guidelines for appropriate discipline of such violation.
There should be periodic statutory internal auditing of the internal financial controls and other control systems. These statutory audits are very important because they are intended to test the compliance of activities with various elements of the compliance program and also to uncover new corruption risks that might have been overlooked or would have developed since the last risks assessment.

The communication of the Anti- Bribery / Anti- Corruption Policy (AB/AC ) and the Anti-Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP) to all employees and the public is an important internal control activity because it assists with enhancing awareness and understanding of the policy and the program. It is felt that in making the information available, it would assist in more effective monitoring. As a general rule, the policy and programme are of no use unless they are effectively communicated and accessible throughout the entity and the wider community ( local and international ).

In a nut shell, what I have attempted to do is to outline some of  the necessary activities that the policy makers, the board of directors, the senior officers and managers must consider if they want to put in place systems to manage its entity corruption risks. In our country, I believe that we have a number of entities in the public sector that provide services that are high in dollar value  to companies ( local and international) that operate in industries that rank very high on the Corruption Indexes and we must therefore try to manage the corruption risks associated with the provision of services.

If the policy makers, the board of directors, the senior officers and managers are desirous of developing and putting into place at their entity an Anti- Bribery/Anti-Corruption Policy ( AB/AC) and it’s companion–an Anti-Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP)–and they do not have the in-house expertise, then I would suggest that they go out and hire in the services; I believe that some of entities may be able to obtain funding from an international development organization to undertake such a project

Finally, I hope that this letter generates discussions as to how the policy makers, the board of directors, the senior officers and managers would go about evaluating their entities corruption risks and developing and implementing an Anti-Bribery/Anti-Corruption Policy (AB/AC) and its companion–an Anti-Corruption Compliance Program (ACCP ).
Regards
Dunstan Barrow AA; MBA (Hons); BSc (Hons)