CELAC for Implementing Regional Corruption Index

Quito, December 9, 2014 (PL).- The members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) will seek transparency and try to establish a regional index to evaluate the fight against corruption during a two-day meeting opened here yesterday.

In their second meeting, ministers and high ranking authorities of prevention and struggle against corruption of CELAC will discuss the possibility to implement a system of evaluation of members in this regard.

Technical Secretary of Management Transparency of Ecuador, Ernesto Valle, highlighted the urgency of materializing the initiative and said that the index is expected to promote advances in the struggle against corruption as it will rely on real, precise information about the issue.

According to Andes news agency, participants in the meeting will also try to form a working group of CELAC specialized in prevention and struggle against corruption.

Their agenda also includes exchanging best practices in the field by the different states, focusing on specific experiences like the Organic Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information (Lotaip) of Ecuador.

Valle argued that Lotaip allows the citizen to be the first supervisor of civil servants as "the struggle against corruption should not only involve the State, but the citizens' support is also needed," he said as quoted by El Telegrafo newspaper.

The first meeting of CELAC on this topic was held in December, 2013 in Bolivia, and commitments made then will be reviewed in the ongoing meeting.