IACA and SIGA unite to eradicate corruption in sport

The International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) and the Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) have signed a groundbreaking partnership aimed at fostering the prevention of and the fight against corruption in sports. This collaboration, sealed by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signifies an unwavering commitment to upholding integrity, promoting good governance, and safeguarding the values of fairness and transparency in the sporting industry. As media partners of SIGA, we here at AS USA are proud to announce the news.

Both IACA and SIGA recognize the grave threats posed by corruption to the security and stability of societies, and their collaboration aims to counter these challenges by promoting ethical values, justice, sustainable development, and human rights.

Drawing upon the numerous international conventions and mechanisms that advocate for Good Governance and the fight against corruption, including the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, this partnership underscores the importance of international collaboration in addressing these pressing issues.

The MoU was signed at IACA’s headquarters in Vienna by Thomas Stelzer, Dean, IACA, Italian Magistrate Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, Independent Chair, SIGA, co-Chair, G20-Anti-Corruption Working Group, and Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros, SIGA Global CEO. It solidifies a comprehensive framework for cooperation between the two like-minded organisations.

Under this agreement, IACA and SIGA will engage in various forms of collaboration, including joint projects, exchanging relevant information, capacity-building initiatives, and promoting best practices in anti-corruption measures, such as adopting SIGA Universal Standards.

Commenting on the agreement, Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, SIGA’s Independent Chair and G20′s Anti-Corruption Working Group co-Chair, stated:

“Sport is a multi-billion-dollar industry with intricate ties to public and private interests. High levels of public expenditure, and large-scale investment from sponsors, together with high-value media contracts, create an environment that presents significant corruption risks. Anti-Corruption international technical assistance and capacity-building are strategic for legal framework development and the enforcement of bodies and authorities. Anti-corruption education supports prevention as it helps to nurture a culture of integrity and raise awareness in the wider society. That’s why the convergence of the IACA and SIGA is very good news and a strong step for a new era of enforcement in the fight against corruption in Sports.”

Thomas Stelzer, IACA’s Dean, added:

“Sport is an important enabler of sustainable development and has a strong positive impact on societies, particularly on children, youth, and young people. At the same time, corruption, match-fixing, poor governance, lack of transparency, infiltration of organized crime, trafficking in players, and abuses against young athletes are increasingly undermining sport and its capacity to promote positive change in society, modernize procedures, educate and inspire youth, foster inclusion and create new jobs. The memorandum we signed today creates a framework for IACA and SIGA to work jointly on solutions to address a global need for knowledge and updated information, implement research projects, and capacity-building activities to prevent, detect, and counter corruption in sport and any other threats to its integrity”.