Something is rotten in Melanesia!

Joseph Veramu

In the early seventeenth century, Shakespeare wrote the play Macbeth, which featured the famous line: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark".  Today, when it comes to corruption at least, Denmark is far from rotten: the country was ranked first (with a score of 88) in the 2021 Corruptions Perception Index (CPI) – an annual index which measures perceived levels of public sector corruption by experts and the business community.

 Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for a handful of Melanesian countries also included on the latest CPI. Amongst the 180 countries assessed globally, Fiji ranked highest amongst the Pacific countries with a similar score to Dominica at 55 out of 100. 100 indicates very clean and 0 very corrupt. Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and PNG stagnated with scores similar to China, Hungary and Niger at 45, 43 and 31 respectively. PNG continues to rank the lowest on the index amongst the Pacific countries.

 While the CPI relies on experts to assess levels of corruption, a newly released survey shows that Melanesian citizens are also concerned about corruption.  The Global Corruption Barometer Pacific 2021 Survey – measures public perceptions of, and experiences with corruption.  Findings from Fiji noted that 68% of citizens think that corruption in government is a very big problem. The report also noted that, in comparison to other Pacific nations, more citizens in Solomon Islands and PNG were concerned about corruption. A staggering 97 percent in Solomon Islands and 96 percent in PNG said that corruption in government is a very big problem. In Vanuatu, the percentage of people who think that corruption is a very big problem in government was 73%.

 Can more be done to curb corruption and improve these findings?

  In most Melanesian nations, governments have made progress through law reform and policy development to meet key global anti-corruption commitments they have signed onto - such as the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), and relevant targets under Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16. However, sometimes these well-meaning policies are not effectively translated into tangible actions in the annual plans of Ministries tasked with promoting transparency and accountability. 

 For example, an Inter-press Services (IPS) Report on 7/2/2022 quoted Busa Jeremiah Wenogo, a development economist in the capital of Papua New Guinea (PNG), Port Moresby, noting that “kickbacks offered to government officials to facilitate payment is still rampant. Most big civil and building contracts tend to have very strong political connections and ties, which means that the procurement process is still weak.” The same IPS report also quoted Ruth Liloqula, Chief Executive of Transparency Solomon Islands. She told IPS from the capital, Honiara that the most corrupt individuals and institutions in the country are members of parliament and companies extracting natural resources.

 It is also noted that there is sometimes a tendency to personalize culture. Tribal or kinship links are sometimes exploited by people in powerful positions for personal gain. This calls for governments to ensure greater accountability of political decision makers. It should be mandatory that public officials should publicly disclose their income and assets. These disclosures should be linked with mechanisms to identify and monitor potential conflicts of interest. There should be improved accountability in the use of discretionary public funds and ensuring that law enforcement institutions and the judiciary can effectively sanction high-level corruption.

 Integrity Fiji (Fijian civil society organisation focussed on anti-corruption) has recognised the value of collaborating with multiple stakeholders.  Working with the Ministry involved in government procurements has helped to ensure that vendors and suppliers are familiar with ethical compliance procedures. The Fijian Civil Society Organisation (CSO) also found that working closely with United Nations agencies like United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has been very helpful in providing best practices on anti-corruption strategies under the provisions of UNCAC. In the case of UNODC Pacific, they have excellent procurement resources and expertise to assist government procurement officers develop proactive competency skills in ethical processes.

  The CPI 2021 and other corruption surveys recently conducted in the region reveal that the situation has not changed for the better. This calls for evaluating the effectiveness of various activities in national anti-corruption plans. It may mean that “same old-same old’ activities where workshops are held in poverty-stricken villages, and long lectures in air-conditioned hotel settings are done away with because of their ineffectiveness. Governments in the anti-corruption space should be actively monitoring, re-strategising and adopting best practices as needed to ensure anti-corruption efforts yield impact in communities – particularly for those most marginalised.

 In Fiji, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, curbing public sector corruption is challenging. All is not well at the top of the political hierarchy in Melanesia. CSOs in the anti-corruption space can sometimes feel like Hamlet – sleep walking through anti-corruption advocacy as the ‘rank and gross’ spirits of corruption refuse to be curbed! Things must be done differently to start seeing some improvements.

 Joseph Veramu is Executive Director of Civic Leaders for Clean Transactions (CLCT) Integrity Fiji – Transparency International’s National Contact in Fiji

Tuvalu and Smaller Pacific Nations Must Have Proactive Anti-Corruption Policies

 The article also appeared in the Fiji Times of Feb 12, 2022 Joseph Veramu

Regional and global news media outlets are reporting that Tuvalu's Foreign Minister Simon Kofe has been nominated for the Nobel peace prize by Norwegian politician Guri Melby. Mr Kofe received global media prominence during COP26 when he gave an impassioned speech (that went viral) while standing knee-deep in the sea to highlight rising sea levels due to climate change. Saving Tuvalu, Kofe said, was akin to saving the world. There is much that the smaller Pacific Island states can do, for example, in accessing climate finance to assist in climate mitigation and adaptation strategies. There is also the cautionary argument that working with non-state actors in the anti-corruption space can help these nations overcome corruption issues that inevitably creep in when huge amounts of funds are being disbursed. Non state agencies represent citizen groups in small island states and although their discussions may be time consuming and raucous at times, they provide a vital kind of grassroots democracy that can inform parliamentary debates and decisions

Kofe’s nomination has also been positive in bringing attention to the smaller Pacific island nations (GDPs of between $200m to $500m), with vibrant cultures and sustainable marine practices, that are very rarely featured in media reports, unless they are sinking! Most of the publicity has usually centred around Tuvalu’s closest neighbour Fiji (GDP-$13b) which held the leadership of COP23. It is a refreshing change to see Tuvalu coming into prominence on the global climate change stage. Tuvalu leaders have a reputation for being robust in their climate change arguments especially in Pacific Forum Leaders’ meetings. Their strategy of presenting important climate change messages standing in knee deep water ensures their message becomes viral.

In 2019, then Tuvalu Prime Minister Sopoaga wanted regional leaders including Australia to endorse the Tuvalu Declaration, a strongly worded call to action from the Smaller Islands States grouping. Australia had resisted because it would have affected its massive coal exports and the language of the Declaration referred to climate change as a ‘crisis’ which the Australian Prime Minister did not agree with. The BBC on 12/10/21 reported leaked COP 26 documents showing nations lobbying to change the key climate report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the UN body tasked with evaluating the science of climate change. The BBC reported a senior Australian government official rejecting the conclusion that closing coal-fired power plants is necessary, even though ending the use of coal was one of the stated objectives of COP26. Australia was also part of a group of developed nations arguing in favour of emerging and currently expensive technologies designed to capture and permanently store carbon dioxide underground.

A Transparency International blog piece noted that “Many of the countries (no Pacific country is included in the list) judged most vulnerable to the most visible effects of climate change are also countries where experts perceive high levels of corruption in public services.

To access Global Climate Funds, it is important that small Pacific Island states like Tuvalu and Kiribati, for example, adhere to the same compliance standards as larger nations and not be treated any differently. These nations need to have robust anti-corruption agencies that investigate allegations and also have the expertise to successfully prosecute corruption cases. While the Global Corruption Barometer Survey 2021 did not cover Tuvalu, it surveyed 3 other similar smaller nations. The results are insightful. Blissful small islands are sometimes prone to corruption, despite our perceptions that they don’t often happen in paradise!  In Tonga, Kiribati and the Federated States of Micronesia it was reported that 38%, 64% and 61% respectively, of people paid a bribe for public services in the previous 12 months. The argument is made here that small Pacific Island states should not be ignored in anti-corruption strategies targeting internal corruption and international money laundering, for example.

The UNDP Pacific Office reported on 14/12/21 that it is supporting Tuvalu and Pacific nations to assess the climate-security risks and support them to design and implement risk management solutions that are sustainable, inclusive and catalytic. In 2021, Tuvalu was also part of the UNDP Pacific’s virtual knowledge forum to exchange experiences and views on ‘Intelligence-Led Financial Disruption of Corruption.’ The approach aimed to gather relevant information on various corruption offences and convert the information into useful intelligence by relevant Tuvalu agencies to identify facilitators of corruption.

Earlier in the article I alluded to the important role of non-state actors working in the anti-corruption space. For Pacific states with limited expertise in anti-corruption advocacy, working constructively with CSOs in this space can be beneficial in preventing corruption. A Transparency International blog piece noted, for example, that “Carbon offset markets have been found to present a myriad of corruption risks and fraud…Clearly defined social, environmental, and anti-corruption safeguards should be installed in climate project activities. A complaints mechanism and mandatory local stakeholder consultation procedures need to be created to avoid and swiftly address adverse local impacts.”   

A strong argument is being made for small Pacific Island nations to engage proactively with non-state players. A Transparency International blog article noted that, “The mandate of climate justice is not just environmental. It also calls for the protection of communities most vulnerable to it, often at the frontlines of fighting the climate crisis.”

While Mr Kofe of Tuvalu and other Pacific Island leaders stand in global climate change forums, in designer suits, to expound on their nations’ environmental plight, it is important that the people who make up these vulnerable nations are actively involved in grassroots democratic forums that take their insights and wisdom into serious consideration. CSOs in the anti-corruption space have built up a constructive body of knowledge working with communities and are better placed to work with Pacific Islands states in developing policies, accessing resources and other plans for promoting sustainability.

Joseph Veramu is an Executive of CLCT Integrity Fiji, the accredited National Contact for Transparency International in Fiji.