Anti-Corruption Education – Approaches and Challenges

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, dear guests

Thank you for inviting me to this Roundtable on Anti-Corruption education and for this opportunity to share with you some thoughts on the importance of integrity in the public administration, private sector and society as a whole.

Let me start by thanking our sister agency UNODC for continuous efforts in providing support to Montenegro in this very important area.

We all know what a dangerous threat corruption has become. It weakens emergency responses and health care, undermines climate action and education, impedes job creation, and enables organized criminal groups to operate with impunity.

Corruption leaves our societies less resilient and less equipped to recover from the many crises the world is presently facing.

Identifying sustainable measures that involve all parts of society to counter corruption are crucial. Indeed, we are here today precisely because we recognize that tackling corruption is a shared responsibility.

20 years ago, the United Nations Convention against Corruption was adopted, the only legally binding universal anti-corruption instrument with 189 states parties. This landmark instrument has pushed efforts by States to counter corruption to the fore. Governments now better recognize the importance of good governance and accountability, as well as how necessary political commitment is to work across borders to better track, investigate and prosecute cases of corruption. Education to prevent corruption is recognized in the UN Convention against Corruption, in its article 13. The importance of anti-corruption education was also emphasized in the political declaration adopted by the Special session of the UN General Assembly against corruption in 2021. These documents recognize the need to promote and strengthen partnerships with the education sector to develop practical and multidisciplinary anti-corruption training for the young people.

Montenegro is actively implementing the Convention. It is also a part of the Anti-Corruption and Illicit Finance Roadmap for the Western Balkans, which was endorsed in June 2021 in Ohrid.

Ladies and gentlemen,

For a long time, the focus of the fight against corruption was on strengthening normative and institutional frameworks to increase capacity to prevent and fight corruption.

Now we know, that while the governments are ultimately responsible for the implementation of the anti-corruption measures, the catalyst for change often comes from wider society – from the teachers who teach their students about ethical behaviour; from the journalists who expose wrongdoings; from the civil society organizations who raise awareness on the dangers of corruption; and from the companies who refuse to engage in corrupt practices.

Successful anti-corruption efforts must begin but not end with legal and institutional approaches; they must seek to transform attitudes, social norms, and behaviours. Education is a crucial instrument for promoting a culture of integrity and resilience to corruption, among the future leaders and professionals.

To achieve this goal, it is imperative to instil ethical awareness and accountability in individuals from an early age, equipping them with the necessary knowledge and skills to recognize and resist corrupt practices throughout their lives. This is an investment in a future society, with less corruption, and more trust, with a strong culture of accountability and transparency, where responsible citizens act with integrity in their personal and professional lives.

By incorporating anti-corruption training into primary, secondary, and tertiary education, we can help deep understanding of the detrimental impact corruption has on society and realize their role in combating it. Education may foster a collective commitment to upholding the principles of justice and honesty, nurturing a generation that is knowledgeable about the causes and consequences of corruption.

Thank you for participating in today’s event and for your commitment to strengthen anti-corruption education in Montenegro and I wish you successful deliberations.