Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency of Uzbekistan Akmal Burkhanov has rated highly Qatar's campaign against corruption, hailing His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's anti-corruption efforts, which resulted in him establishing the Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award (ACE Award).
Speaking with Qatar News Agency (QNA) in Tashkent, Burkhanov said that corruption is a plague that afflicted the whole world, including Uzbekistan, with no single country 100-percent exempt from it — a fact that highlights the ACE Award's great value to recognize standout anti-corruption activists worldwide.
Burkhanov said the ACE Award was a valued appreciation for NGOs, civil society, and the press for their roles in exposing and fighting corruption, elaborating that the global anti-corruption campaign must go beyond government agencies.
Describing corruption as a global plague that has diversified its forms recently, he underscored the importance of international co-operation and the exchange of experiences among countries that have scored great anti-corruption progress.
Burkhanov voiced hopes his country would further collaborate and exchange expertise with Qatar to root out corruption, stressing Doha's world-class anti-corruption achievements. He also spoke about the meetings he held with officials from several Qatari anti-corruption agencies, including the Public Prosecution and the State Audit Bureau, as part of his Doha visit in October. During that visit, Qatar's State Audit Bureau and Uzbekistan's Anti-Corruption Agency sealed an agreement to bolster bilateral co-operation to combat corruption.
He hailed the anti-corruption efforts exerted by HE Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption Center of Qatar (ROLACC), and UN Special Advocate on the Prevention of Corruption, Dr Ali bin Fetais al-Marri.
The ROLACC has devised international anti-corruption initiatives, and Lusail University launched two master's programs in international criminal justice, in partnership with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), offering majors including combating money laundering and terrorist financing and combating corruption — an indication of Qatar's valued anti-corruption role worldwide, His Excellency told QNA.
Commenting on Uzbekistan's reforms to battle corruption, Burkhanov highlighted the several moves withing the country's public policy, including the introduction of a special anti-corruption law and an independent Anti-Corruption Agency.
Reports from international organizations concerned with measuring corruption have shown Uzbekistan advanced 32 positions, over the course of the past five years, on the Corruption Perception Index.
Burkhanov highlighted his country had devised several initiatives and staged events to fight corruption in Central Asia.
Over the past three years, Uzbekistan has been hosting the annual Tashkent Anti-Corruption Forum — an event that brings together a host of world-class anti-corruption leaders and experts. In 2023, Uzbekistan hosted the Central Asia Forum on Transparency of Government Bodies Activities, in the city of Bukhara.
