The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has been given the responsibility to help translate the commitments of UNCAC into action. An important part of its mission is to help the private sector strengthen its engagement in anti-corruption activities globally and level the playing field for businesses around the world. UNODC has extensive experience and in-depth technical expertise in the area of business integrity and is implementing technical assistance projects to support businesses in preventing and fighting corruption.
UNCAC contains a number of provisions that, while addressed to States, have a direct impact on companies because they promote rules under which all stakeholders, whether governments or businesses, operate in line with standards designed to combat unfair competition, reduce market distortions and promote integrity.
Article 12 of UNCAC is devoted to measures aimed at preventing corruption in the private sector through a broad set of actions to be taken by States, including:
UNCAC calls for cooperation between national authorities and the private sector to fight corruption and promote the interests of both the private and public sectors, including through private sector reporting on corruption. Corruption schemes are frequently complex and by nature covert, making their detection hard. The cooperation of private entities, especially financial institutions, is often key to launching and conducting investigations. Article 39 of UNCAC encourages cooperation between companies and investigating and prosecuting authorities. The Convention also provides for the protection of whistle-blowers, witnesses, experts and victims (Articles 32 and 33).
