Report of the 6th Annual African Anti-Corruption Dialogue

Over the last three years, the world has grappled with COVID-19 and responses to the pandemic by many African countries have brought with them the challenges of misuse, theft, fraud and wastage of public resources meant to manage and recover from the pandemic. These challenges have brought to the fore the need for better transparency and accountability measures in emergencies as this would in turn boost the fight against corruption on the African continent. Such measures are particularly crucial as many African countries have now managed the pandemic and moved to the recovery stage and funds earmarked to support recovery efforts need to be subjected to strong accountability and transparency mechanisms. To support this endeavour, the African Union Advisory Board Against Corruption (the Board or AUABC) dedicated its work in 2022 to highlighting the importance of not neglecting transparency and accountability norms during pandemics such as COVID-19 as such neglect negatively impacts on the overall progress in the fight against corruption. Towards this end, the Board convened the 2022 African Anti-Corruption Dialogue (the Dialogue) under the theme ‘Strategies and Mechanisms for the Transparent Management of Covid-19 Funds’. The Dialogue, which was held virtually, brought together diverse participants including representatives of Member States, International Organizations, National Anti-Corruption Agencies (NACAs), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Academia and the media, among other actors. Participants exchanged on practical experiences, challenges, success stories and gave recommendations on enhancing accountability and transparency in management of funds during emergencies and crises such as COVID-19. This report provides a summary of key statements, discussions and recommendations from the Dialogue.