Bhutan became the 28th member of the Asian Development Bank Organisation (ADB) and the Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia-Pacific on September 3.

The Anti-Corruption Action Plan for Asia-Pacific was endorsed on May 10 this year, while the membership was formally accepted during the 10th steering group meeting held in Indonesia. Officials from Anti-Corruption Commission represented Bhutan during the meeting.
Bhutan’s anti-corruption commitment and solidarity to regional anti-corruption partnership was welcomed during the meeting, according to officials.

“We will be sharing experiences with the members and also participating in regional programmes to fight against corruption,” said commissioner Thinlay Wangdi.

Developing effective and transparent systems for public services, strengthening anti-bribery actions, promoting integrity in business operations and supporting active public involvement are the three pillars of the ADB-OECD action plan.

The initiative was established in 1999, while the action plan for Asia and Pacific was launched in 2001.

People’s Republic of China, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Korea, and the Pacific Islands are some of the members of the initiative.