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Status of signature & ratification of Anti-Corruption treaties by SADC State parties
Anti-Corruption Trust of Southern Africa
July 30, 2007

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Executive summary
The study was carried to find out 'who has done what' in as far as signing and ratifying anti-corruption treaties5 is concerned. The selected treaties have long since been open for signature, ratification and implementation.

The enquiry found out that the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol against Corruption was signed by fourteen (14) SADC member states and ratified by nine (9) of them. Six (6) member states that have not ratified are Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Mozambique, Seychelles and Swaziland.

The African Union (AU) Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption was signed by twelve (12) SADC member states and ratified by eight (8). Seven (7) countries have not ratified and these are Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles and Swaziland.

The United Nations (UN) Convention against Corruption was signed by thirteen (13)10 SADC member states and ratified by ten (10) of them. Botswana and the Democratic Republic of Congo have not signed the convention. In terms of ratification Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique Swaziland and Zambia have not ratifed whilst the rest have ratified.

Considering the benefits of combating corruption, the following recommendations are made :

Signing and Ratification of anti-corruption instruments
SADC member states are urged to sign and ratify the three anti-corruption treaties. The following is specifically recommended under the three instruments;

1. Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol against Corruption
   Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Seychelles and Swaziland are urged to ratify the Protocol.
2. African Union (AU) Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption
   Botswana, Malawi, Seychelles are recommended to sign the Convention whilst Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles and Swaziland should ratify.
3. United Nations (UN) Convention against Corruption
   Botswana and the Democratic Republic of Congo have not signed the Convention and are therefore called upon to do so whilst Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia should ratify.

Implementation of the anti-corruption treaties
The countries that have ratified the instruments are recommended to take the necessary measures, including legislative and administrative measures to ensure the implementation of their obligations under the treaties. Signing and ratifying treaties without implementation does not help at all.

If the countries have no or little capacity to operationalise the treaties, it is important that they say so, so that assistance could be given by the different stakeholders.

The SADC Committee, the Advisory Board on Corruption within the African Union and the Conference of the States Parties to the Convention should be supported by the treaty bodies, States Parties and other stakeholders to effectively execute their mandates.

Reporting on Progress made and sharing best practices
Countries that are doing well in combating corruption should write reports, document the best practices and share them with other countries and stakeholders. Sharing information will facilitate learning. Civil society should also be allowed to produce shadow reports for submission to the treaty bodies. Independent reports from diverse sources are needed to enrich the information base.

Technical assistance
Assistance should be provided to national governments to strengthen their capacity to comply with the requirements of the treaties. CSOs and development partners should also support the efforts by countries to implement the treaties. The same support should be extended to the SADC Committee, the Advisory Board on Corruption within the African Union and the Conference of the States Parties to the Convention.

Monitoring the implementation of the treaties
National, regional and international review processes should be carried out to assess whether national governments have taken adequate action to implement the provisions of the treaties.

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