The International Forum on Integrity in the Tourism Sector Discusses Anti-Corruption Strategies

Malé (UNA) – The proceedings of the First International Forum on Promoting Integrity and Combating Corruption in the Tourism Sector continued on Wednesday, 7 May 2025, in Malé, Maldives. The forum is organized by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in partnership with the Republic of Maldives and in cooperation with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), with broad and high-level participation from OIC Member States and the presence of international organizations specializing in anti-corruption.

‏On its second and final day, the forum addressed a number of issues related to combating corruption in tourism, with the aim of developing collective solutions and measures to promote integrity in this sector.

‏During the keynote session titled “Why Do Most Anti-Corruption Strategies Fail—or Seem to Fail—in Achieving Their Goals?”, Mr. Kamel Ayadi, Board Member of the World Justice Project, addressed anti-corruption strategies and the factors that contribute to their failure. He pointed to reasons such as the lack of genuine political will, an excessive focus on law enforcement and prosecution at the expense of prevention, an overemphasis on compliance with little attention to integrity and ethical culture, and the weak alignment between local strategies and international development and anti-corruption standards.

‏He noted that many developing countries lack some of the necessary tools to combat corruption, particularly professional tools to address corruption at the administrative level.

‏Ayadi warned against the excessive reliance on global anti-corruption indices, as they tend to highlight failures while overlooking local progress and success stories. He stressed the need for alternative indicators that focus on local realities and offer practical, applicable tools for fighting and measuring corruption.

‏He also praised the pioneering role of Saudi Arabia through its national strategies for promoting integrity, upholding transparency, and combating corruption.

‏In the session titled “Calling for Robust Integrity Measures in Tourism”, several experts and officials from the Maldives discussed the risks of corruption in the tourism sector, their country’s experience in addressing them, and how to balance tourism with environmental sustainability.

‏During the session titled “Role of Collaboration and Exchange of Information in Combatting Corruption in the Tourism Industry”, international experts highlighted the challenges, international cooperation, and mechanisms to enhance information sharing as part of efforts to uphold integrity in the tourism sector.

‏Anga Raj Timilsina, Anti-Corruption Programme Advisor at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), gave a presentation on the “Global Initiative for Measuring Corruption”, which aims to develop evidence-based indicators to assess countries’ progress and efforts in combating corruption, and to propose policy recommendations and reforms to support anti-corruption strategies and promote transparency and accountability worldwide.

‏The forum is expected to conclude with recommendations to enhance integrity in the tourism sector and build international cooperation in this field.