Latin America’s compliance community joins forces to increase business integrity

More than 250 compliance experts from all over Latin America met in Lima from 24 to 26 October for an exchange on anti-corruption and business integrity. At the Regional Integrity Week of the Alliance for Integrity in Latin America, they discussed best practices and approaches on how to establish a more dynamic, sustainable, and transparent business environment in the region. The three conference days covered 25 sessions with 78 speakers from 70 organizations.

The eighth edition of the Latin American Regional Business Integrity Week entitled “Integrity, transparency and participation: partnerships to strengthen trust in Latin America” brought together representatives of enterprises, public institutions, civil society organizations and academia from across the continent. Throughout the three-day event, the topic of trust took center stage. In her opening remarks, Alliance for Integrity’s Director Susanne Friedrich explained that Latin America’s population's trust in its institutions is low and continues to decline, a fact that has severe political and economic consequences, such as inefficient public services, or a decrease of foreign investment due to concerns and a lack of transparency. This, in turns, perpetuates a cycle of poverty and inequality in the region. “We need to do something positive to counteract this”, she called upon participants.

David Schmidt from the economy and trade department of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Lima underlined in his statement that trust is essential for any prosperous society. “We must fight corruption with urgency, as it not only affects economic efficiency, but also limits access to opportunities”, he said. Cristina Murgueitio, Director of the Integrity Commission the Ecuadorian Business Committee, stressed that a lot of money is getting lost through corruption and added that “these resources could be used for other purposes like education and health.” “Corruption affects all companies, large and small”, warned Oscar Caipo, President of the Peruvian association Empresarios por la Integridad, in his opening statement.

The conference covered topics like the challenges of setting up a culture of integrity, the role of politics in corruption prevention, the role of Supreme Audit Institutions in building and strengthening trust, and the role of collective action – but also addressed gender-related issues in corruption, bribery measurement tools for the Latin American business sector, and greenwashing. Sustainability, digitalization, and diversity were buzzwords throughout all sessions. Another highlight was the meeting of the trainers of the Alliance for Integrity from nine different Latin American countries on 25 October. They gathered to exchange on country-specific challenges and share best practices. The three conference days also offered room for exchange among the partner organizations of Alliance for Integrity and for strengthening the network.

In sum, conference speakers and participants agreed that Latin America is a region with a potential for economic growth that can only be achieved when public and private actors trust each other and work together. There was common consensus that collective action in practice goes beyond sharing perspectives among different actors or sectors, and that key success factors for impactful collective action are shared responsibility and ownership for a joint agenda. Business integrity, as a fundamental principle, involves carrying out operations in an ethical and transparent manner. In the area of responsible supply chain management, the need to ensure ethical practices was emphasized at all stages, from obtaining products to their delivery. Furthermore, promoting diversity in decision-making teams is essential as it contributes to the inclusion of diverse perspectives, which ultimately strengthens transparent business decision-making.

Since its first application in 2016 in Indonesia, the Integrity Week is a well-proven concept of the Alliance for Integrity. It brings together relevant stakeholders from different sectors to develop practical solutions, share knowledge and spread good practices regarding business integrity. During the week, the Alliance for Integrity jointly with its partners organizes various events for different target-groups focusing on central issues of corruption prevention. This year, Peru hosted the eighth Regional Business Integrity Week in Latin America. The event was organized by the Alliance for Integrity in partnership with the Building Governance with Integrity Project of the German Development Cooperation, implemented by the GIZ Peru. The next Latin American Integrity Week will take place in Santiago de Chile in 2024.

More information

Video recordings of the conference: 24 October, 25 October 

Photo gallery: www.semanadeintegridad.com

About the Integrity Week in Latin America: The Integrity Week - Alliance for Integrity

Alliance for Integrity’s activities in Latin America: Latin America - Alliance for Integrity