The restitution of looted assets

Résumé du document

A lot of countries have experienced corrupt governance and its consequences on public management. In numerous cases, heads of Government, presidents, dictators and other forms of political leaders have stolen large amounts of public money. Nowadays, the Governments of those countries are reclaiming the funds, known as "looted assets", from the host banks and countries, such as Switzerland. A recent case in which a "bank country" has decided to cooperate, enlightening the possibilities to recover looted assets, is the starting point of our study. The case: Abacha - Switzerland (Sani Abacha was the former president of Nigeria) gives a perfect example of bilateral cooperation for the restitution of stolen assets. In our paper, we will analyze the possibilities of a cooperation mechanism between countries and the role that the World Bank can play in fighting against global corruption.

Extraits

[...] The inspections revealed both adequate and inadequate use of funds budgeted for development. Ugolor, Nwafor and Nardine write in their report that “some contractors lived fully up to and even exceeded expectations for responsible execution of the task with which they were entrusted, while the gross failure and neglect of other contractors defies belief”. This shows that the Bank should not forget the long-term impact of the restitution. For example, according to this independent report, some completed projects already required major refurbishing shortly after construction's completion: in other similar cases of restitution, priority should be given to sustainable projects that have a direct positive impact on the well-being of the population. [...]

[...] The last recommendation might seem obvious, but it is still important to mention it. Despite recent criticism, the World Bank's supervision on such multilateral agreements is still the best guarantee for the international community. However, past experiences have demonstrated that the Bank can not fully succeed without the involvement of civil society and, more in particular, of the local community. Local and international NGOs and any other relevant organization should therefore be involved both in the restitution and in the monitoring process, since they bring different perspectives and suggest different approaches that are worth being taken into consideration. [...]

[...] The political dimension of the restitution: unlike the Abacha case, most of the people involved in the suspicious transactions are not only alive but they are also holding public office. For instance, the negotiation process has been complicated by the defence strategy chosen by the lawyers of the American businessman, appealing to “national security” defence The procedural dimension of the restitution: the United States and the Swiss Confederation each have the individual right to veto a decision on transferring funds they consider that the proposed use does not serve the agreed aim of the program” (DFA, 2007). [...]

[...] A standard procedure for consultation should be instituted in order to involve end-users and targeted communities The civil society should press the Government for self-monitoring procedures of the officials' activities and for the implementation of a regulated budget spending in order to combat corruption The civil society should be integrated in the monitoring of budget expenditures on development priorities The civil society should undertake capacity building programs on budget analysis and project monitoring All these recommendations are aimed to a strengthened monitoring system and to the participation of the civil society in monitoring projects. The World Bank agreed on the importance of these findings. Following its report, all parties outlined the need of institutionalizing this form of “participative monitoring” 2006). Monitoring should also include the projects' budgeting and planning. A consensus exists on the need for long-term monitoring, since in the long run it can also enhance the country's democratic image and attract more foreign investments. [...]

[...] 2-3. Nardine, J. H., Nwafor, A. & Ugolor, D. (2006). Shadow Report on the PEMFAR Monitoring Exercise. Benin City: Nigerian Network on Stolen Assets. Retrieved June from: http://www.aktionfinanzplatz.ch/pdf/kampagnen/potentatengelder/nigeria/PEMFA R_SHADOW_REPORT.pdf Remo, G. (2005, 15th December). [...]