The World Bank has unveiled an initiative to help developing
countries recover assets stolen by corrupt leaders and
officials.
"We at the World Bank, in partnership with the international
community, want to help developing countries recover assets that
have been stolen by former corrupt leaders," said World Bank
President Paul Wolfowitz.
"This is a moral obligation. Recovering even a portion of the
stolen assets will help fund development and social programs, or
badly-needed infrastructure."
The Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative was discussed
yesterday as part of the institution's Governance and
Anti-Corruption Strategy in a working session with country
delegates and representatives of international agencies.
"The recovery of stolen assets is a practical problem," said
Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for International Development of
the UK. "This initiative is really timely. It's about each of us
playing our part."
The cross-border flow of proceeds from criminal activity,
corruption and tax evasion is estimated at US$1-1.6 trillion - half
of this from developing and transition economies. Corrupt money
associated with bribes received by public officials from developing
and transition countries is estimated at US$20-40 billion.
The World Bank is pursuing the StAR Initiative jointly with the
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Proposals on the table for further discussion include:
Persuading all jurisdictions to ratify and implement the UN
Convention Against Corruption; helping developing countries build
capacity for requesting mutual legal assistance for asset recovery;
and developing partnerships to share information and
experience.
In recent years, nearly 4,000 corrupt Chinese officials fled
overseas with more than US$50 billion of illicit money.
(China Daily April 17, 2007)