OECD publishes Anti-Bribery Guidance for African Companies
/In October of 2016, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) published new guidance to assist African companies with improving their anti-bribery compliance programs. The guidance is designed to assist companies with both designing and implementing corporate anti-bribery programs in Africa.
"The African Development Bank estimates that USD 148 billion is lost to corruption in Africa every year." (1)
The guidance document attributes the bribery risks, that confront both African and foreign companies in Africa, to:
- Prevalence of business sectors prone to corruption
- Many predominantly cash-based economies
- Use of local agents for projects
- Systemic public sector corruption
- Weak law enforcement
The guidance includes a checklist to help companies monitor their progress and includes discussion on:
- How management can demonstrate leadership and commitment to the company's anti-bribery policy
- Determining the status of a traditional leader/village elder
- Addressing duress payments
- Setting rules on gifts and hospitality
- Avoiding bribes disguised as charitable donations
- Avoiding bribes disguised as political donations
- Handling bribery solicitation
- Getting started with a bribery risk assessment
- Mitigating third party bribery risks
- Maintaining accurate books and records
- Establishing a corporate whistleblowing mechanism
Download the guidance document here.
Key Links:
- African Development Bank Group (AfDB)
- AfDB: "Workshop on Fighting Corruption and Tackling Illicit Financial Flows from Africa"
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
- (1) OECD: "Anti-Bribery Policy and Compliance Guidance for African Companies"
- OECD News Release: "OECD and AfDB launch powerful tool to help African companies prevent bribery"
