DUSHANBE, January 17, Asia-Plus — Sherkhon Salimov, Director of the Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption, will represent Tajikistan at an international conference on strengthening integrity and fighting corruption, which will be held in Bali, Indonesia from January 28 to February 1.
According to information posted on website of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), senior officials from the more than 100 States that are Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) will meet in Bali. They will be joined by parliamentarians, business leaders, crime fighters from anti-corruption agencies, representatives of international organizations and development banks, civil society, the media, and the entertainment industry. Over 1,000 participants are expected.
Looking ahead to the Conference, Antonio Maria Costa, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said “in Bali I urge Member States to demonstrate that they are living up to their commitment to fight corruption, and to identify what more needs to be done”. Mr. Costa, whose office is custodian of the UN anti-corruption Convention, said “this is more than an inter-governmental conference: it is a chance to replace a culture of corruption with an environment of integrity. Since corruption hurts us all, we have a shared responsibility to stop it”.
The United Nations Convention against Corruption is the first and only global legally binding anti-corruption instrument. The Convention was adopted by the General Assembly in October 2003. It came into force on December 14 2005. So far, 140 States have signed it and 107 have ratified it to become full-fledged States Parties.
President’s decree on establishment of the Tajik anticorruption agency was signed on January 10, 2007. The Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption has a staff of 500. It performs functions previously carried out by the State Financial Control Committee, Main Tax Police Directorate, Directorate for Combating Corruption, and other agencies.
