The multitrillion-dollar cost of corruption was siphoning vital funds away from initiatives to help develop some of the world’s most impoverished countries, a Saudi gathering of leading human rights officials has been told.
The secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen, has warned that widespread bribery and the theft of public funds was seriously undermining efforts to protect human rights.
During his speech at the inaugural ceremony of the 15th regular session of the OIC’s Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) on Tuesday – delivered on his behalf by the organization’s assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Hesham Youssef – Al-Othaimeen revealed the global cost of corruption to be a staggering $3.6 trillion.
The secretary-general said the inability to put an end to the problem presented an obstacle to wise governance and sustainable development, eventually leading to the impoverishment of developing countries.
He noted that according to World Economic Forum statistics, the cost of corruption represented 5 percent of the world’s gross national income, a figure which negatively impacted on the poorest and most vulnerable people.
The IPHRC meeting, being held at its headquarters in Jeddah through April 25, will address a range of issues, most notably ways to combat corruption.
In his opening address, the recently elected IPHRC chairman, Akmal Saidov, thanked Saudi Arabia for hosting the session and the secretary-general for his support. He also reviewed the commission’s most significant activities planned for the current year.
Saidov said that the IPHRC will hold its sixth international forum – to deal with youth rights – in Uzbekistan next October and noted that the commission will send a delegation to the occupied Palestinian territories, in coordination with the OIC’s General Secretariat.