Corruption Watch’s executive director Karam Singh shares his thoughts and reflections on the year now all but behind us, in this letter to the organisation’s many supporters.
Dear supporter
2023 was an impactful year for Corruption Watch (CW) – not only for our team, but for the country, and all those working to end corruption. The turbulence of the political, economic, and global climate, and the persistent challenges of poverty, inequality, and unemployment, heightened by the impact of corruption on the most vulnerable in our society, made our work that much more critical and urgent.
The environment for whistleblowers in South Africa remains extremely precarious, and our team has continued to work towards improving legislative and support measures, together with a range of civil society and other organisations. Submissions were made to the Department of Justice in respect of recommendations on the proposed whistleblower protection regime.
Our work has also encompassed submissions to multiple pieces of legislation, including recommendations on the Political Party Funding Act to the National Advisory Council Against Corruption, established by the president in terms of South Africa’s national anti-corruption strategy. Our legal submissions have also included submissions to Parliament on the Public Procurement Bill, the National on Prosecuting Authority Amendment Act, the Companies Amendment Bills, and the Money Laundering Big Terrorist Financing Control Regulations.
Other important highlights include pursuing accountability for the implementation of Zondo Commission recommendations, advocacy and public education on procurement reform, leadership appointments, and providing commentary on the implications of South Africa’s greylisting by the Financial Action Task Force in 2023.
CW continues to play an important role regionally and internationally and in 2023 we hosted the Africa regional meeting of Transparency International. We also participated in regional anti-corruption conferences in Zambia and are present at the Conference of State Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption taking place in Atlanta, Georgia, US, at the time of writing.
Thank you for making some of these pivotal moments in our work this year possible through your ongoing support for CW, and for being a part of this incredible community. Your support for and interest in what we do makes us that much more committed to intensifying our efforts.
We look forward to continuing our journey with you next year, as we keep up the good fight to rid our country of the scourge of corruption.
Sincerely,
Karam Jeet Singh
Executive director: Corruption Watch
