NEW DELHI: The first meeting of the G20 Anti-corruption Working Group (ACWG) concluded in Gurugram, Haryana on Friday with a call for strengthening law enforcement cooperation for action against corruption and related economic crimes.
At the 3-day G20 ACWG Meet, intensive and productive deliberations were held on several key focal areas pertaining to asset recovery, fugitive economic offenders, information sharing, institutional frameworks for combating corruption and mutual legal assistance.
The meet was vital for India specially in the wake of economic offenders and absconders fleeing the country after committing crime and taking refuge in foreign land. In the absence of smooth bilateral ties, securing extradition of such offenders has been a time consuming & tedious process.
Following the concluding session, a joint briefing on the meet was conducted by the Rahul Singh, Additional Secretary, Department of personnel and Training and Chair, G20 ACWG, along with Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, Head of Task Force, Co-chair, G20 ACWG, Italy, addressed the media at the end of the ACWG meeting.
Rahul Singh said that in the past three days, “there have been intensive and productive deliberations on several key focal areas pertaining to Asset Recovery, Fugitive Economic Offenders, formal and informal channels of cooperation for information sharing, institutional frameworks for combating corruption and mutual legal assistance, among others.” he endeavour of the delegates during the deliberations to arrive at a consensus on the draft text of the high-level principles that are on the agenda for the ACWG during the India’s G20 Presidency, he said.
Over 90 delegates participating from 20 member countries, 10 invitee countries and 9 international grganisations attended the first meeting of the G20 ACWG, which is truly representative of the richness of international experience in anti-corruption initiatives.