Seventeen Asian nations adopt plan to fight corruption

Seventeen Asian nations adopt plan to fight corruption

Seventeen Asian nations adopted a legally non-binding plan Friday to fight corruption, which they said was widespread in the region and hampered economic growth and poverty reduction efforts.

The plan advocates civil service, private business and public awareness action designed to help halt the supply and demand for bribery in publicly-funded projects.

Implementation of the plan is to be reviewed at annual meetings, to which each signatory government in the region is to report on their progress.

The agreement came at the end of a three-day anti-corruption conference, the third annual such meeting held by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development.

"Corruption imposes a costly burden on businesses, with negative implications on growth and the creation of jobs," Shoji Nishimoto, the director of the ADB's strategy and policy department told reporters at the end of the gathering.

"Governments must act against corruption to promote growth and development," he said.

He added countries that adopt the anti-corruption plan were likely to get favourable treatment when it comes to allocating ADB assistance.

The countries that endorsed the action plan are Bangladesh, the Cook Islands, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, the Kyrgyz Republic, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Samoa, Singapore and Vanuatu.

China, where corruption at all levels of government is a problem, and which earlier this month was accepted into the World Trade Organization after a 15-year struggle, did not attend the meeting, which officials said was due to logistical problems.--AFP