Speech by Sandra Paesen, Ambassador of the European Union in Malawi at the Occassion of the Controlling Officers Anti-Corruption Forum

Good morning, I am truly honoured today to be here and to be part of this impressive initiative regarding anti-corruption in Malawi.  

Allow me to start by acknowledging that the EU is not the only Development Partner cooperating with the Government in this area, but also other contributing partners under 'One UN' have been providing joint support to Development Effectiveness and Accountability in Malawi.  In this regard I would like to highlight the work of the Performance Enforcement Department under the Office of the President and Cabinet, who in joint collaboration with the Anti-Corruption Bureau have conceptualised this forum based on the performance evaluation process last year. This process illustrated how most Ministries Departments and Agencies had potential to improve in the area of corruption prevention and management.

I have just started my duty tour as EU Ambassador to Malawi and as you can imagine I have also been briefed about Malawi's challenges regarding corruption. And that is why, I am excited that one of my first public appearances/speeches is taking place on a positive note, witnessing Malawi's efforts to address this underlying nuisance, which hinders Malawi to achieve and sustain growth, thereby also preventing inclusive development. 

Sadly, I have seen that Corruption and Transparency indices for Malawi do not seem to be going in the right direction, e.g.

• the number of respondents who see corruption as the most problematic factor with regard to doing business in Malawi has steadily increased from 6.4% in 2011 to 19.7% in 2017/18;
• the overall level of transparency and accountability is declining from 59 in 2013 to 42 in 2017
• and the number of people who agree or strongly agree with the statement that “ordinary people can make a difference in the fight against corruption?" has continuously declined from 74% in 2011 to 48% in 2017.
• And so forth

This, marred with the continuous reports in newspapers and complaints by citizens seems to suggest that corruption is on the increase, (or more corruption is being detected).

Is Malawi losing the fight against corruption? I think not yet! I believe Malawi over the past years has developed a good foundation to address this vice.

I understand the efforts reach back to 1995, when Malawi passed the Corrupt Practices Act and established the Anti-Corruption Bureau with its mandate to lead the fight against corruption in Malawi. Malawi also has in place an Anti-Corruption Strategy, which was launched in 2009 by Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika. It focuses on the creation of an integrity system that ensures that all sectors participate in the fight against corruption. Among others, the strategy mandates all public institutions to establish institutional integrity committees which are tasked to champion anti-corruption efforts within your institution. I am keen to hear more about the strategies success/ challenges and lessons learnt later on.

But having an institutional framework and policies in place is not an end in itself. It is a first and very necessary step. What needs to follow is the implementation of the same. And with implementation I mostly mean you as Controlling Offices, you hold the key within your institutions and services to fight against impunity in your institutions and services.

We shall not forget, corruption is a people issue. Processes and systems can try to limit corruption – particularly IT Systems can try to make the misuse of funds harder by incorporating various levels of checks and balances, but systems can never eradicate it. Only the ethical conduct and integrity of people can successfully contain corruption. And this is why you as Controlling Offices are so important. You are the leaders of the institutions, you set the tone on how well the job is done, your staff depend on you to show the way, to provide guidance, and to be a role model to follow. How you carry yourselves and conduct business will be replicated throughout your institutions. In any institution, in Malawi as elsewhere, in order to avoid a culture of impunity settling in, it is important that fraud and maladministration lead to disciplinary cases and sanctions. I call on you to be an example, an example that will shine and show your colleagues that impunity has no room in your institutions.

And please don’t get me wrong, there will never be zero corruption, corruption exists everywhere, and very much also in Europe. For example, the King's brother-in-law in Spain is in prison and his sister is being further investigated for corruption. There are unscrupulous people in every country. What can make the difference is how hard Government institutions work to detect it, prosecute it and ultimately punish it. A culture of zero tolerance for corruption is essential to build trust in the public service and public institutions. The effective protection of whistle-blowers is paramount. In the EU, we publish for all its institutions every year a report on cases of corruption with the ensuing consequences. In this way it is clear to all, what are the different 'faces' of corruption and what are the likely consequences to expect.

The Malawi Government has on a number of occasions announced a Zero tolerance policy for corruption. Convincing the public that corruption is indeed furiously persecuted and punished would help rebuild again the trust that you as top civil servants will make sure that the public resources are used in a responsible and effective manner, thereby making it possible for ordinary Malawians to receive the services they deserve.

But why is the fight against corruption so important? It is not just a moral or ethical issue, which it also is. But first and foremost, it is an economic issue. When individuals orient their energy towards extracting rents through illicit means for their private benefit, they are not contributing to growing the economy, they are actually destroying it. And when any society is focussed on extracting rents, incentives for others to create value disappear.

Earning money through legal means is difficult. H.E. the President Arthur Peter Mutharika speaks often about integrity and hard work. I cannot agree more that for any country to prosper there should be no such thing as easy money so that the ingenuity and hard work of individuals is directed towards producing valuable goods and services for their fellow countrymen, as opposed to stealing from them.

In this regard let me emphasise, globally we all agree, that without meaningful action on corruption, progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, would be limited. Indeed projections for Malawi have shown that the respective SDG goal regarding corruption (SDG 16) has a multiplier effect on the other SDGs.

I would like to stress that I am glad to see that the fight against corruption is led by Malawian institutions. Development partners, who have a seat on the fence, can facilitate certain processes, but not much more than that. The fight can only succeed if it is led from within Malawi, from within the institutions. Therefore I congratulate the Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Performance Enforcement Department for organising this forum as a first step for everyone to recognise their responsibilities and contributions in the fight against corruption. I am glad to see the most senior officials of the Malawian civil service actively committed to this fight.

In this regard, I was also pleased to read just last week about the new alliance between the Malawi Law Society and three civil society organisations who together are set to fight serious and organised corruption in the country. The Judiciary also has a crucial role to play in the fight against corruption by swiftly and thoroughly concluding court cases of Malawi.

If we all work collectively for the same goal, we can win the fight against corruption - step by step. Last year Government undertook an anti –corruption forum/National Dialogue on Corruption where a comprehensive action plan was developed.  I look forward to hearing today from all of you on the frontline how we can make sure this Action Plan is translated into resolved action that make a difference.

Malawi's anti-corruption strategy also foresees Institutional Integrity Committees (IICs) in each Ministry, Department and Agency, in order to ensure transparency and accountability in all Government business. These would indeed be an effective solution to contribute to anti-corruption efforts in your institutions. I look forward to following the debate later today, on how these committees can reclaim their rightful place in the fight against corruption.

Before I leave the stage, allow me to use this opportunity to comment on public procurement. Very often corruption is associated with Government and civil servants. But let us not forget that corruption particularly regarding public procurement often involves the private sector. There needs to be someone on the other side, who is ready to connive or even worse, put pressure on the civil servants for public resources to be leaked. As benefits can often be high it might not be easy to curb such practices, but increased transparency and accountability in public procurement can go a long way to reduce the risks.

To this effect, I hope that the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority, will soon be able to effectively execute its mandate with a newly established Board and soon to be appointed Director General. Again a very positive first step: the implementation of the new law is paramount to increase transparency and accountability for public funds in Malawi.

In summary, the fight against corruption is an important priority for Malawi to ensure inclusive growth and to bring much needed improvements to service delivery. Malawi a number of processes in motion to be successful in this fight: a National Anti-Corruption Strategy is in place, including the focus on Institutional Integrity Committees; a new Public Procurement Authority to improve transparency and accountably over public funds is in place; and importantly, we see today a reflection of a home grown drive to improve on past performance on this front. I don’t see why Malawi cannot win the fight against corruption.

Zero corruption is not possible but zero tolerance for corruption is.

Leadership in this fight is the key!

Now is the time for you, the leading officials of the civil service, to let actions speak louder than words!

I wish you fruitful deliberations and thank you for your attention.