Corruption in Asia: Its Effect on Business and Nations
Effects
of corruption to be discussed by corporate decision-makers at Bali forum
By the Center for Corporate Responsibility
Approximately
200 CEOs and senior executives from corporations and governments around Asia
will gather in Bali this April to discuss the positive business results that
can be obtained when a company embraces anticorruption strategies and find ways
how government, corporations, media, and the judiciary can cooperate in the
fight against corruption.
On April 7-8,
2005, the 3rd Managing Corporate Governance in Asia Conference will be
held with the theme Corruption in Asia Its Effect on Business and Nations.
Business and political leaders, as well as high-ranking experts from
international organizations and NGOs from all over the world, will provide
their viewpoints and expertise on the negative effects of corruption and how to
minimize its occurrence.
Greatest Obstacle to
Development
Corruption, according to
the World Bank, is the single greatest obstacle to economic and social
development: "It undermines development by distorting the rule of law and
weakening the institutional foundation on which economic growth depends."
The World Bank believes that an effective anti-corruption strategy builds on
five key elements:
1. Increasing political accountability
2. Strengthening civil society participation
3. Creating a competitive private sector
4. Institutional restraints on power
5. Improving public sector management
Co-chairmen of the MCGA will be Mr. George Tahija,
president/director of PT. Austindo Nusantara Jaya, which focuses on commercial
and industrial investments, and Mr. Jose L. Cuisia Jr. (in photo), co-chairman
of AIM and president and CEO of Philippine American Life and General Insurance
Company. The conference is organized by the C.V. Starr Chair in Corporate
Governance in Asia endowed by AIG, the Asian Institute of Management
(AIM)-Ramon V. del Rosario Sr. Center for Corporate Responsibility, and the
AIM-Hills Governance Center.
It is time for companies
to have a better understanding of how corruption negatively impacts the growth
and development of national economies. Corporate decision makers in Asia need
to learn to succeed in business without engaging in corrupt practices, said
Tahija.
The President of
Indonesia, H.E. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and Indonesian Trade and Industry
Minister Mari Pangespu have been invited to grace the occasion and deliver the
opening keynote address.
An impressive set of organizations
is cooperating to make the conference successful the Confederation of
Asia-Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry, The Asia Foundation (TAF),
Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific,
International Finance Corporation (IFC), United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) Indonesia, Indonesia Business Links, Forum for Corporate Governance in
Indonesia, Ikatan Alumni AIM Indonesia, Academy of Corporate Governance, Center
for International Private Enterprise, Center for Good Corporate Governance
Korea, Makati Business Club Philippines, and All India Management Association.
Sponsored in Indonesia by
Bank Niaga and UNDP, the conference aims to highlight how the improvement of
corporate governance in Asia can help in reducing corruption in both the
private and public sectors, thereby contributing to robust economic
development. Other sponsors are Pearl Oil (Jambi) Ltd., Garuda Indonesia, PT
Freeport Indonesia, AIG Lippo, Shell, Figaro Coffee Company, Hills Governance
Center, Daya Dimensi Indonesia, and PricewaterhousCoopers. The official media
partners include the International Herald Tribune, Business Monitor
International, Corporate Governance Asia, SWA Sembada, Finance India, KWR
International, Philippine Graphic, Asiamoney, Asialaw and the China Law and
Practice.
Date Posted: 2/10/2005