The Kingdom reaffirmed its firm commitment to the United Nations Convention against Corruption and to enhancing international cooperation and asset recovery through the development of legislative and institutional frameworks. These measures aim to ensure the speed and efficiency of procedures and strengthen international cooperation in the confiscation and recovery of funds derived from corruption crimes.
This came during the Kingdom's participation in the meetings of the working groups under the UN Convention against Corruption on asset recovery and international cooperation, held from September 1 to 5 at the United Nations headquarters in Vienna. The delegation was headed by Chairman of the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) Mazin Al-Kahmous.
The Kingdom highlighted its international and regional initiatives to combat transnational corruption and recover assets. These include its chairmanship, through the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority, of the Global Operational Network of Law Enforcement Authorities Against Corruption (GlobE Network); its chairmanship of the Middle East and North Africa Asset Recovery Network (MENA-ARIN); and its hosting of the network’s permanent secretariat.
The Kingdom also stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation among states parties by fully utilizing existing international networks to enhance and facilitate the exchange of information.
On the sidelines of the meeting, Al-Kahmous met with Dean of the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) Dr. Slagjana Taseva, in the presence of Saudi Ambassador to Austria and Permanent Representative of the Kingdom to the United Nations in Vienna Dr. Abdullah bin Toula. Discussions focused on enhancing joint cooperation in academic programs, vocational training, and scientific research in the field of anti-corruption, in addition to addressing other topics of common interest.