The Seminar and National Walk was organised by the UN Global Compact Local Network (GCLN) to say "NO" to corruption. The event was simultaneously held at Islamabad, Peshawar, Lahore and Karachi in collaboration with Employers' Federation of Pakistan (EFP) and Lions Clubs International, District 305 (S-1) Pakistan.
Business community members, civil society, NGO's and academia attended the Seminar and National WalK. The object of the seminar was to effectively convey the collective desire of business to combat the evil affects of corruption on business and society and to integrate and promote the principles of UN Global Compact relating to anti-corruption which require that "Business should work against corruption in all forms including extortion and bribery.
In Karachi, the speakers at the seminar emphasised upon business community to play its role in combating corruption by internally framing policies, programme and code of ethics which may eliminate room for corruption in products, services and also emphasised to work externally with Government and civil society to raise voice for combating corruption in its worst form.
The keynote speaker of the seminar GCLN Secretary Fasihul Karim Siddiqi said the adoption of the 10th principles of UN commits participants not only to avoid bribery, extortion and other forms of corruption but also to policies and concrete programmes to address corruption.
Companies are challenged to join government and civil society to realise a more transparent global economy. Business has a vested interest in social stability and the economic growth of local communities it has suffered due to lost opportunities to external markets and supply chain. Business community can and should play its part in making corruption unacceptable.
Fasih said that impact of corruption on private sector could be assessed by the fact that it adds up to 10 to 20 percent to cost of doing business. He said that according to World Bank bribery had become one trillion dollars industry. Corruption is inherently wrong and was a misuse of power, position and has disproportionate impact on the disadvantaged. It undermines the integrity of all involved and damages the fabric of the organisation to which they belong. Fasih further said that to fight corruption in all its forms was simply the right thing to do.
Siddiq Sheikh of FPCCI in his presidential speech said that indulging in corruption was against the injunctions of Islam and as Muslims we must fight corruption and eliminate it from with in us. U R Usmani of Employers' Federation of Pakistan, Reza Ali of Lions Clubs International, Nazar Ali Director Manpower, Government of Sindh, Tony Lazaro world class Football coach, Ansarul Haque of Radio Pakistan and others addressed the seminar.
The seminar unanimously adopted the following three approaches to combat corruption: (a) Internally, make sure there are policies, systems, code of conduct risk assessment, monitoring and commitment; (b) Externally, be part of broader initiative, general awareness, rising campaigns, education initiatives, information campaigns on anti corruption; and (c) Collective action by engaging with other business stakeholders for sanitisation on the need to corruption.-PR
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