Research
ANNUAL REPORT 2021
The aims of IACA’s research are the following:
- Establishing an evidence base for the development and implementation of effective anti-corruption policies, programmes, strategies, standards, and guidelines
- Highlighting new challenges, trends and solutions in anti-corruption, compliance and collective action to the international community.
- Promoting IACA as a centre of excellence for research and training on anti-corruption, compliance and collective action
- Developing and offering content for new certification programmes, trainings, and courses in academic programmes and supporting the implementation of these programmes and trainings.
- Generating knowledge and develop materials for the provision of technical assistance.
The IACA’s Global Research Network
The Academy established the IACA’s Global Research Network. Its aims are: to promote collaboration between researchers; support the initiation, design, and implementation of global, regional and interdisciplinary research projects; and produce results and innovative ideas available for policy makers and anti-corruption practitioners from the public and private sectors.
The network contributes to the development of new ideas and the debate on the future of global efforts in the field of anti-corruption, compliance, and collective action. The initiative received the support of many of IACA’s faculty members and other internationally recognized scholars.
Overview of anti-corruption compliance standards and guidelines
In 2019, IACA published an overview of 32 anti-corruption compliance standards and guidelines. The aim of this publication was to support the implementation of anti-corruption compliance in the business sector, especially by SMEs. The publication received very positive feedback from the professional compliance community. In 2021, IACA began working on the second revised edition of the overview including new guidelines published by various stakeholders since 2019.
The IACA’s Repository of Research on Anti-Corruption, Compliance and Collective Action
The Academy established a concept of a global repository with the aim to provide anti-corruption professionals and all those who are interested in preventing and combating corruption with access to the latest in anti-corruption thinking from around the world.
This publically accessible platform is designed to contribute to the development of new ideas and the debate on the future of global efforts in the field of anti-corruption and compliance.
Research on Integrity and Compliance in Sports and in the Humanitarian Aid Sector
IACA started analyses of best practices in promoting integrity and compliance in sports and in the humanitarian aid sector.
The expected research outcomes are overviews of best practices, indicators for anti-corruption compliance programmes benchmarking, training programmes and materials.
Global Programme on Measuring Corruption
Dating back to the G7 summit in 2017, there has been increasing intergovernmental attention and a global call to develop new comprehensive corruption measurements and indicators. This need was reaffirmed in Resolution 8/10 of UNCAC Conference of State Parties (CoSP) in 2019 and at the G-20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial meeting under Saudi Arabia’s presidency.
Recognizing this need, the Global Programme on Measuring Corruption (GPMC) was developed by IACA in 2021. In November 2021, the official Memorandum of Understanding was signed between IACA and the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (NAZAHA) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. IACA also received funding from NAZAHA to set up the programme.
This new global initiative aims to design a new tool to measure corruption.
Based on the assumption that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, it will develop a new robust methodology for assessing progress in combatting corruption that is:
- designed in collaboration with practitioners from different countries and sectors;
- smarter than current indices in considering differences among countries in legal frameworks and approaches; and
- more actionable for country practitioners tackling corruption.