Integrity for Good Governance in Latin America and the Caribbean

Integrity is key to increasing productivity, reducing inequalities and strengthening public sector capacity and as a result sustains and boosts the economic and social development of Latin America.Corruption, however, undermines inclusive growth and endangers the social contract.At least since the Inter-American Convention against Corruption from 1996, governments in the region have taken actions to fight this scour.However, more than 20 years later, corruption seems to be more than ever in the news, and the large majority of citizens in Latin America are unsatisfied with how their governments handle the problem.A perceived lack of integrity is at the heart of the loss of trust in governments and other institutions in the region.This publication analyses the state of integrity in Latin America, examining the broad range of implementation challenges.Curtailing the impunity experienced in the region as well as citizens’ discontent requires additional efforts to bridge the current gap between de jure quality of regulations and their effective de facto implementation.Not always can this implementation gap be explained by capacity constraints.Sometimes, it is maintained by the resistance of powerful interests with stakes in the status quo, putting obstacles to the full implementation of well-intentioned reforms.Managing this political economy aspect of integrity and anti-corruption reform is a challenge in the region.To address this sensitive, but crucial issue, disentangling the Gordian knot of money in politics is key.Doing so can help prevent policy capture and ensure more inclusive governance.Some countries are already responding to this priority area by driving forward reforms of political finance regulations and election processes.In addition, this publication analyses challenges and opportunities in ten different domains from regulation to public procurement, passing through merit-based civil service and highlighting the role of provincial or regional governments, the private sector and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the fight against corruption.Enhancing co-ordinated regional efforts, peer-review mechanisms, benchmarking for evidence-informed decisions, as well as citizen participation could be powerful tools supporting reforms in these areas.This publication provides timely evidence and guidance from which Ministers and Highlevel Officials participating in the meeting “Integrity for Good Governance in Latin America and the Caribbean: From Commitments to Action”, taking place in Lima, Peru, on 18-19 October 2018, can draw useful insights.Moreover, aiming to move “from commitments to action”, this document proposes an Action Plan with up to 103 concrete items that governments in the region can undertake to move towards corruption-free administrations and ensure a levelled ground for more inclusive policy-making.In this regard, it complements and provides a way forward for the pledges subscribed in April 2018 by the Summit of the Americas through the Lima Commitment.The OECD has played a leading role in the fight against corruption and the promotion of integrity.We are also responding to our members’ demands to maximise the global impact of our expertise, making it more widely available to non-member countries from all regions along the OECD Strategic Approach to Combating Corruption and Promoting Integrity.This publication, for the first time, gathers the knowledge and expertise from across the OECD and tailors it to the specific needs and demands of the Latin America and the 4 │