Tokyo Conference - ADB OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia Pacific


About the conference The Tokyo conference was the third annual conference of the ADB OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia-Pacific. The Initiative was launched in 1999 at a workshop for countries of the Asia and Pacific region held in Manila under the auspices of the ADB and OECD and attended by 250 participants from over 35 ADB and OECD countries and economies (Manila, October 1999), and formally endorsed in December 2000 at the second annual conference in Seoul, Korea. Its objective is to put in place the framework conditions for effectively combating corruption by identifying appropriate political, institutional, and other reforms necessary for the various participating countries. The aim of the third annual conference in Tokyo was: (i) to further strengthen the exchange of experience among governments, business and civil society organisations active in the fight against corruption in participating countries and to evaluate progress and problems; (ii) to foster regional co-operation through the adoption of a regional Anti-Corruption Action Plan; (iii) to increase knowledge of specific problems related to corruption and to develop effective counter-measures; and (vi) to promote co-ordination of international technical assistance in the field of anti-bribery and good governance. These four elements will set the background for discussions that will take place at the Tokyo conference. See the press release of the conference conclusions for more information.
Participants Officially invited participants of the Tokyo Conference included representatives of the Asia-Pacific business community, the media and NGOs, as well as senior policy makers and officials from the ministries of justice, interior, finance and accountability institutions. Countries and economies invited included 33 ADB regional member countries and economies(1) and signatory countries to the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery(2). International organisations and other institutions invited included the Asia-Europe Meeting, the Asia Foundation, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the Association of South East Asian Nations, the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Federation of Consulting Engineers, the International Federation of Journalists, the International Monetary Fund, the Pacific Basin Economic Council, Transparency International, the United States Agency for International Development, the United Nations Development Programme, the World Bank Group, the World Trade Organisation, and many local NGOs. download the final list of participants (1) Azerbaijan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, PR China, Fiji, Hong Kong, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakzstan, Korea (Republic of), Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Viet Nam (2) Argentina, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (Republic of), Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States
Agenda The Tokyo conference focused on the priority areas identified by participants of the Seoul Conference and where, consequently, the regional Action Plan encourages policy reform. Themes that were discussed reflected the three pillars of action of the Action Plan (I: Developing Effective and Transparent Systems for Public Management; II: Strengthening Anti-Bribery Actions and Promoting Integrity in Business Operations; III: Supporting Active Public Involvement). Plenary sessions reviewed progress made in the fight against corruption in the Asia-Pacific region, with particular attention given to the priority areas highlighted in the Conclusions and Recommendations of the Seoul Conference (see Annex I), and introduced conference participants to the scope and objective of the Anti-Corruption Action Plan which was endorsed in the final plenary session. Focus groups discussed specific topics under each of the three pillars of the Anti-Corruption Action Plan. On the basis of concrete case studies, focus group discussions aimed at identifying major problems and barriers in the respective field, and concrete solutions to these problems. The corresponding section of the Action Plan as well as background papers prepared by the respective panellists of each session served as background information. The final agenda can be downloaded in pdf format.
Proceedings Download the proceedings of the Tokyo Conference.