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Heads of anti-corruption agencies in the Commonwealth Caribbean concluded their annual conference in Nassau, The Bahamas, last week with a unanimous pledge to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) in the fight against corruption.
Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies was hosted by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Bahamas Public Disclosure Commission as well as the Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies in the Commonwealth Caribbean, under the theme, ‘Best Practices in implementing Integrity and Anti-Corruption Laws in the Caribbean in the age of Artificial Intelligence’.
Towards the end, delegates from Commonwealth Caribbean countries also adopted a communiqué, outlining key priorities and recommendations for member countries to implement over the coming years.
They also agreed to enhance collaboration at international, national, and regional levels to bolster anti-corruption efforts.
Fighting Corruption and Implementing Integrity
In the communique, delegates recognised the significance of technology in today’s world and agreed to leverage the power of artificial intelligence to prevent corruption.
Additionally, they agreed to continue raising awareness and encourage community involvement in the fight against corruption through innovative public education across the Caribbean.
Delegates also called on Caribbean Governments to provide sufficient funding to the Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies in the region to enable them to operate effectively.
Opening the conference, Roger Koranteng, the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Adviser and Head of Public Sector Governance reaffirmed the Secretariat’s commitment to working together with all member countries to tackle the “corrosive cancer of corruption” head-on.
He said:
“The Commonwealth’s award-winning anti-corruption work is needed more than ever to help countries curb corruption and redirect funds toward sustainable development goals.
“This meeting has been an excellent opportunity for our member countries to share good practices and challenges in combating corruption. It will enable us to provide more tailored assistance to the region, including using the power of AI.”
Life, living, human propensities and behaviours.
According to the 2023 Corruption Perception Index, none of the Commonwealth Caribbean countries sit among the 100 most corrupt countries. Six Commonwealth Caribbean countries – the Bahamas, Barbados, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, Saint Lucia and Grenada – rank among the 50 least corrupt countries in the world.
The Commonwealth Caribbean Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies was created by the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2015 and has met annually since its inception.
Lady Avril Anande Trotman-Joseph, Chairperson of the Commonwealth Caribbean Association of Integrity and Anti-Corruption Bodies, thanked the Commonwealth for its anti-corruption support to Caribbean member countries.
She said:
“This conference is a rallying call for our re-commitment to the full implementation of our international obligations and international best practices. This will require holistic and interagency approaches in ways that cannot be business as usual.
In our work, we need to understand that corruption is about life, living, human propensities and behaviours. Therefore a comprehensive societal approach must be adopted with emotional intelligence along with the data supported by the artificial intelligence, to realise effective integrity, accountability and anti-corruption.”
The four-day conference saw delegates review national and regional anti-corruption efforts, share knowledge and good practices, and discuss the impacts of corruption on sustainable development.