YANGON—Myanmar’s Union Parliament has approved a proposal for the country to sign on as a member in the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA), in a bid to expand the capacity of the country’s own anti-graft body.
The proposal to join the global institution was put forward by President U Win Myint last month.
During parliamentary sessions on Monday lawmakers seconded the proposal, saying they hoped the plan would help in boosting the country’s anti-corruption initiatives.
According to its website, the academy, launched in 2011, offers trainings, academic degree programs and a “holistic approach to anti-corruption education and research,” plus technical support and assistance, international cooperation and knowledge-sharing opportunities.
Seventy-four countries—including China, India, Thailand, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines—and four non-state organizations are members of the IACA so far.
Lawmaker Daw Myat Thida Htun welcomed the membership proposal, saying it will help to improve the country’s anti-corruption efforts and overcome the shortcomings of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
ACC chairman U Aung Kyi told Parliament in May that the limits of the commission’s manpower, technical expertise and experience account for the low number of corruption prosecutions it has turned out.
The commission successfully investigated and prosecuted 46 of 10,543 complaints lodged in 2018, handing over 1,795 of those cases to other government bodies.
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