Guyana to undergo on-site anti-corruption review

See below the full release from the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance:

The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance is pleased to inform the public that in  keeping with Guyana’s treaty obligations under the Organisation of American States’ Inter American Convention Against Corruption (IACAC), Guyana will be undergoing its sixth-round  of on-site review in October 2023 through the Follow-Up Mechanism for the Implementation of  the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC), 

MESICIC is the Anticorruption Mechanism of the OAS, and it brings together 33 of the 34  Member States to review their legal frameworks and institutions in light of the Inter-American  Convention against Corruption (IACAC). The MESICIC Experts from within the member states,  with assistance from the Technical Secretariat, review domestic laws and institutions to  determine if they accord with the provisions of the Convention and if they are effective at  preventing and combating corruption. As part of this review process, the Experts visit the  country being reviewed, where they meet with government officials and civil society  organizations to gather more information to compile their report of that round of review. This  report typically contains recommendations for the State to strengthen its anti-corruption  architecture to prevent and combat corruption. Guyana ratified the IACAC in 2000 and as such  has an Expert on the MESICIC which meets twice yearly.  

Experts from the Republic of Suriname and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago have been  selected by MESICIC to conduct the review of Guyana, and will be conducting the requisite  consultations and meetings which form the “on-site review” from the 2nd to the 5th of October,  2023 in Georgetown, Guyana. The experts conducting this sixth round of review will be  supported by staff of the OAS Technical Secretariat.  

This important national exercise requires the involvement of civil society actors, private sector  organisations, and public sector and state agencies.  

The following state agencies are expected to participate in this national review: 

1. Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs  and Governance  
2. Ministry of Public Service 3. Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).
3. Financial Intelligence Unit 
4. Audit Office of Guyana  
5. Ministry of Finance 
6. Public Procurement Commission 8. National Procurement and Tender  Administration Board  
7. Special Organized Crime Unit  
8. Attorney General’s Chambers  11. Integrity Commission  
9. Bank of Guyana  
10. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and  International Cooperation  
11. Ministry of Home Affairs  
12. Director of Public Prosecutions  
    

The following civil society organizations have also been invited to participate and make  presentations: 

1. Private Sector Commission 2. Georgetown Chamber of Commerce  and Industry (GCCI). 
2. Guyana Bar Association 
3. Guyana Association of Women  Lawyers (GAWL). 
4. Guyana Public Service Union. 6. Institute of Chartered Accountants of  Guyana (ICAG). 
5. Federation of Independent Trade  Unions of Guyana. 
6. Transparency Institute of Guyana  (TIGI). 
7. Guyana Bankers’ Association  10. Guyana Gold & Diamond Miners  Association 
8. Guyana Manufacturing and Services  Association 
9. Guyana-America Chamber of  Commerce 
10. Guyana-UK Chamber of Commerce 14. Guyana-Canada Chamber of  Commerce  
11. Civil Society Forum 
12. Article 13  
    

Notably, the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance compiled and submitted  Guyana’s most recent report under the Inter American Convention Against Corruption in May  2023.  

Furthermore, the Ministry chairs the National Coordinating Committee (NCC) on the United  Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and the Inter-American Convention Against  Corruption (IACAC) comprised of 17 agencies involved with the anti-corruption framework of  Guyana. This body continues to play a pivotal role in training these agencies and preparing the  compilation of these State party reports under Guyana’s treaty obligations at the regional and  international levels, including those at the level of the MESICIC.  

The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance is the Government of Guyana’s lead  agency on anti-corruption treaty reporting, and in that regard, is the coordinating agency of this  MESICIC Sixth Round On-Site review.