🇰🇷 Korea Partners Sri Lanka for 'Anti-Corruption Assessment'

The Government of the Republic of Korea, alongside its national anti-corruption agency (ACRC) and the UNDP Seoul Policy Centre, has launched the outcomes of the Anti-Corruption Initiative Assessment (AIA) pilot program in partnership with Sri Lanka's CIABOC and UNDP Sri Lanka. • The Initiative: A US$ 100,000 pilot initiative implemented under the SDG Partnership Project on Transparency and Accountability to review integrity-related practices and identify risk areas in public institutions. • Strategic Alignment: The program aligns with Sri Lanka's Clean Sri Lanka initiative and public sector modernization goals, aiming to boost economic confidence, improve governance, and reduce unnecessary institutional discretion. • Key Focus Areas: Korean Ambassador Miyon Lee highlighted licensing, procurement, taxation, customs, public finance, and regulatory approvals as critical sectors requiring assessments to minimize public decision-making uncertainty and attract foreign investment. • The Korean Benchmark: Korea’s annual integrity assessment framework is highly expansive; its 2024 assessment covered 716 public institutions and drew feedback from roughly 300,000 citizens and public officials. • Future Outlook: The project encourages Sri Lanka to move beyond the pilot phase by developing domestically tailored, sustainable assessment tools to strengthen transparency and expand trade and digitalization.