Today the world celebrates the International Anti-Corruption Day. This has become a tradition since 2003, when 129 countries signed the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) in Merida, Mexico, after working several years towards the creation of an international legal document against corruption. Even though an anti-corruption spirit must be embraced at all places and times, today is a good moment to raise awareness about some of the vast and remaining challenges of corruption not only developing countries, but also in the most developed world.
At the Bank, the International Anti-Corruption Day has been a day of mixed feelings for many of us who are part of the governance and anti-corruption community. A great leader such as Dani Kaufmann gave a farewell lecture (if couldn't attend, you can watch the B-SPAN video). Yes, he is moving on soon to the Brookings Institution, but before that, he shared with us his always clear and accurate perspective on the main governance and corruption challenges that the world is facing.