I am very pleased to participate in the debate on Poverty and the fight against corruption in the Council of Europe member states and I would like to thank Mr. Alain Cousin, the rapporteur, for his excellent work on this topic. Mr. Cousin's draft resolution deserves the support of this assembly to support parliamentarians around the world who are focused on the negative impacts of corruption - and who are fighting to eliminate corruption or reduce it substantially. This is no small task because corruption has become endemic in many of our societies. No country is immune from corruption.
Transparency International ranks countries each year using their Corruption Perceptions Index. In 2003, Canada was ranked the 11th least corrupt country on a list prepared by Transparency International out of a group of 133 countries. Bangladesh was ranked the most corrupt country. Many member states of the Council of Europe did not glorify themselves on this list. By way of example, Georgia was 127th. Azerbaijan was 125th. Ukraine was 111th. I could go on. On a more positive note, Finland, Iceland and Denmark were ranked the 3 least corrupt countries on the list of 133 countries.
There have been various attempts to measure the impact of corruption on a country's GDP. Experts in this field have estimated that a one unit increase in bribery or corruption (on a scale of zero to 10) would lower real GDP growth by 0.3 to 1.8 percentage points, or by 1% to 1.3% depending on the methodology used.
Not only does corruption affect economic performance but it also creates income distribution inequities - the very few monopolize a country's income and wealth while the majority are mired in poverty. Political instability is often an outcome.
We know that poverty and corruption are highly correlated. Poor countries are likely to be corrupt. The reverse is also true - corrupt countries are likely to be poor. We need to recognize, however, that it is greed, not poverty, that is the factor which motivates government and corporate leaders to engage in corrupt activities.
Parliamentarians around the world are beginning to turn their attention to the fight against corruption and money laundering. The Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption, or GOPAC, is such an initiative.
The Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) was founded in 2002 at a conference hosted by the Canadian House of Commons and Senate. GOPAC now has over 400 members around the world, organized into regional and national chapters. GOPAC is the umbrella organization to motivate, support, and organize regional chapters around the world - chapters that have been formed in North America, in Asia, in Africa, in the Middle East, in the Caribbean, here in Europe, and in the Newly Independent States. Other Chapters are being formed on a regular basis.
So, parliamentarians are increasingly involving themselves in the fight against bribery, corruption and money laundering.
We better understand the destabilizing influence of bribery and corruption, and the economic costs associated with it. We understand also how corruption and money laundering are connected. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has been a leader in the fight against money laundering. Passage of the draft resolution before this Assembly today will continue this good work by attacking corruption in a similar way.
Parliamentarians can work together to find the solutions to these very difficult problems.
Thank you.