NEW YORK, Dec. 9, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PricewaterhouseCoopers Global CEO Samuel A. DiPiazza Jr. today used the occasion of International Anti-Corruption Day to announce the establishment of PwC's global Anti-Corruption Centre of Excellence.
"Furthering our commitment to the global fight against corruption, PricewaterhouseCoopers has established an Anti-Corruption Centre of Excellence to strategically align the specialized skills and resources of our firm to help our private and public sector clients," Mr. DiPiazza said. "The Centre will provide clients unparalleled access to our deep expertise in addressing the corruption challenges of today and tomorrow."
Mr. DiPiazza added, "The estimated one trillion dollars lost each year to corruption could feed up to 400 million people for the next 27 years. We can and must stop this corrupt behaviour." DiPiazza is a board member of the World Economic Forum Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (WEF PACI). PricewaterhouseCoopers was the first international accounting firm to join WEF PACI in 2006.
PwC's Anti-Corruption Centre of Excellence will be led by a team of seasoned anti-corruption specialists including David Jansen and Glenn Ware, both of whom work with Mr. DiPiazza and represent PwC on the WEF PACI task force. PwC has built strong relationships with the key players and institutions from the global anti-corruption landscape. In addition to their roles at WEF PACI, both Mr. Jansen and Mr. Ware represent PricewaterhouseCoopers on Transparency International's anti-bribery Steering Committee and the United Nations Global Compact 10th Principle Against Corruption Working Group.
"PricewaterhouseCoopers' Anti-Corruption Centre of Excellence will place PwC in a unique position to advise corporations, governments and international organizations on their governance and anti-corruption strategies. We will direct our efforts to help build a global, competitive, level playing field, based on integrity and ethical conduct, which will ultimately improve foreign investment flows, stimulate economic growth and increase standards of living," Mr. Jansen stated.
Mr. Ware expanded on the importance of International Anti-Corruption Day. "On 31 October 2003, the United Nations General Assembly designated 9 December as International Anti-Corruption Day. This decision was taken in order to raise awareness of corruption and of the role of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) in combating and preventing it. Over 100 countries have signed and ratified UNCAC, and PwC looks forward to working with all parties to ensure effective, independent review mechanisms are implemented to prevent corruption and strengthen governance systems."
Both Mr. Jansen and Mr. Ware credit the longstanding efforts of organizations such as Transparency International and the World Economic Forum for progress in the fight against global corruption, estimated by The World Bank to exceed $1 trillion dollars annually.
Dr. Mark Pieth, Chairman of the OECD Working Group on Bribery spoke of his support for the centre. "I welcome the creation of the new centre, since the private sector efforts to prevent corruption and to raise Governance standards have to be stepped up dramatically in the near future -- and somebody has to help companies on the way."
The World Economic Forum Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (WEF PACI) (www.weforum.org/paci) brings together companies from multiple industries and global locations to fight bribery and corruption. Launched by CEOs from leading global corporations at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2004 in Davos, WEF PACI helps to consolidate industry efforts on the issue and to shape the evolving regulatory framework. By becoming a WEF PACI signatory, a company commits to a zero-tolerance policy toward bribery and corruption and agrees to put in place an internal anti-corruption program that reflects the PACI Principles. Today, there are some 140 signatory companies, representing a global annual turnover of over USD 700 billion, including PricewaterhouseCoopers and other industry leaders from multiple sectors
Transparency International (www.transparency.org), the global anti-corruption NGO, working with a multi-stakeholder and international Steering Committee of companies, business associations, academics, union representatives and NGOs, published in 2002 an anti-corruption code entitled, "Business Principles for Countering Bribery." This code formed the basis for the PACI Principles developed together with members of the World Economic Forum. Since 2002 the insights gained from many workshops around the world have permitted the development of a suite of tools to support companies in developing anti-corruption policies, in implementing them in their organizations, in monitoring their effectiveness and in public reporting on their anti-bribery programmes.
PwC's 2008 report Confronting corruption: The business case for an effective anti-corruption programme is available at www.pwc.com/anti-corruption.
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