The Democratic Republic of Congo participated in the Conference of States Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption in Vienna, Switzerland from June 12 to 16, 2023. This participation was made through a delegation from the Agence de Prevention and Fight against Corruption (APLC) led by Bénie-Laure Kamwiziku, Deputy Coordinator in charge of Prevention, Detection and Administration.
During her speech, Bénie-Laure Kamwiziku denounced the Rwandan aggression in the DRC and the plundering of the country’s resources by Rwanda as well as the preventive measures put in place in the DRC to fight against corruption. She also mentioned the existence of several structures that contribute to the prevention and fight against corruption in the DRC.
As part of the fight against corruption, the DRC has put in place a National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2022-2026, which includes a priority action plan. The digital law, accompanied by a specific Code, aims to promote the culture of integrity in the awarding of public contracts and the management of public finances. An automatic computerized customs system used by the General Directorate of Customs and Excise called SYDONIA has been put in place. The FINALERTE application was also launched to fight against tax and customs fraud. Among the anti-corruption systems put in place, there is also the system for denouncing corruption via the website of the Agency for the Prevention and Fight against Corruption for public information and citizen participation in actions to fight against corruption. Corruption.
In another intervention, Bénie-Laure Kamwiziku expressed the DRC’s interest in benefiting from UNODC Technical Assistance for the implementation of its National Anti-Corruption Strategy based on three axes, including the detection & investigation, prevention and repression.
These measures demonstrate the DRC’s desire to strengthen the prevention and fight against corruption. However, it is clear that the situation remains tense in the DRC, with floods, population displacements and rising urban crime. It is important that the DRC continues to make efforts to improve security in the country and continue the fight against corruption