Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 7th December 2018: Today in Malaysia, organizations, individuals and entities from Asia, North America, Africa, Oceania and Europe were recognised at the Third annual Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani International Anti-Corruption Excellence (ACE) Award 2018. Held to coincide with International Anti-Corruption Day on the 9th December, the winners were presented with their award by His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar and Their Excellencies Tun Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamad, Prime Minster of Malaysia along with the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Mr. Yury Fedotov, and the Attorney General of the State of Qatar Dr. Ali Bin Fetais Al-Marri.
The annual award ceremony took place this year at the Putrajaya International Convention Center in Malaysia, and acknowledged the outstanding contributions towards the prevention of and the fight against corruption that are being made around the world. The winners from Liberia, Australia, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Papua New Guinea, USA and Mexico were presented their Award in support of The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and its anti-corruption mandates, specifically, the implementation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).
In the Anti-Corruption Innovation category, PNG Phones Against Corruption (from the island state of Papua New Guinea) was recognised for its innovative mobile platform for reporting corruption. The text message service has resulted in over 6000 reports of corrupt activity. Since its launch on 15 August 2010, PNG Phones Against Corruption has been responsible for the opening of over 250 cases being investigated by the Papua New Guinea authorities, with five of those awaiting trial. The initiative is responsible for the arrest of two Papua New Guinea government bureaucrats for mismanagement of over $2m of official funds.
