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The
World Bank (WB) and the United Nations (UN) have
launched a new initiative to help poor countries recover
billions of dollars of funds stolen by their leaders.
Strategies to help poor countries recover stolen assets
are outlined in the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR)
initiative, which draws largely from the experiences of
the Philippines, Nigeria and Peru.
UN
Secretary General Ban Ki Moon and World Bank president
Robert B. Zoellick said in a statement that an
international effort is needed to ensure funds looted by
“kleptocrats” are returned to their rightful owners.
“Both
developed and developing countries must work in
partnership. Developing countries need to improve
governance and accountability, but developed countries
should also stop providing a safe haven for stolen
proceeds,” said Zoellick.
Under
the StAR initiative, the UN and WB will urge countries
belonging to the Group of 8 and the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to ratify
the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and
actively aid the efforts of developing countries to
recover assets within their borders.
The WB
and the UN will develop a pilot program that will
provide legal and technical assistance to help countries
recover their stock of stolen assets.
Worldwide, some $1 trillion to $1.6 trillion is
estimated to be lost each year to various illegal
activities, including corruption, criminal activity such
as drugs, counterfeit goods, money and illegal arms
trade, and tax evasion.
The
World Bank noted that corrupt leaders of poor countries
skim as much as $40 billion each year and stash their
looted funds overseas.
“Once
gone, they are extremely difficult to recover, as
countries like Nigeria and the Philippines have
discovered,” the bank noted.
Nigeria
spent five years repatriating half a billion looted
dollars from Swiss banks. But the World Bank noted that
Nigeria’s wait was short compared to the 18 years it
took the
Philippines
to recover $624 million stolen by former leader
Ferdinand Marcos.
Based on
estimates made by the World Bank and the UN, the former
dictator allegedly embezzled funds ranging from $5
billion to $10 billion, or about 4.5 percent of the
gross domestic product of the country during that time.
The
World Bank and the UN report estimates that former
President Joseph Estrada has allegedly embezzled $70
million to $80 million.
The
report by the World Bank and the UN shows that every
$100 million recovered could fund full immunizations for
4 million children, provide water connections for
250,000 households, or fund antiretroviral treatment for
over 600,000 people with HIV/AIDS for a full year.
“There
should be no safe haven for those who steal from the
poor.” Helping developing countries recover the stolen
money will be key to fund social programs and put
corrupt leaders on notice that they will not escape the
law,” said Zoellick. |
