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Siemens pledgles $100 million to fight
corruption
By Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh, Ghanadot
Accra, Dec 14, Ghanadot - Siemens AG will
distribute funds totaling US$100 million,
over 15 years, to nonprofit organizations
worldwide that promote business integrity
and fight corruption.
Applications for support from
the Siemens Integrity Initiative can be
submitted as of today. “Siemens stands for
clean and sustainable business,” hinted at
the launch in Munich, Germany, Peter Y.
Solmssen, Member of the Managing Board and
General Counsel of Siemens AG.
“This initiative will boost
our efforts for more business integrity and
fair market conditions globally. We are
looking forward to making this a joint
success with the World Bank and other
partners.”
The Siemens initiative is part of the World
Bank-Siemens AG comprehensive settlement
that was agreed on July 2, 2009.
“We welcome the company’s
initiative in support of fair and equal
conditions in a highly competitive global
market,” commented Leonard McCarthy, World
Bank Integrity Vice President.
“This initiative can help
spread the word and change expectations of
the business environment particularly in
parts of the world where governance and
integrity remain a challenge to development
effectiveness.”
The Siemens Integrity Initiative supports
projects that prevent and fight fraud and
corruption. These include training and
education projects as well as collective
action, in which companies and institutions
build alliances to achieve clean markets and
fair competition. The selection process will
favor projects having a direct impact on the
private sector and that aim, among others,
to strengthen compliance standards and legal
systems.
Those eligible for funds include
non-government organizations (NGOs),
international organizations, associations
and universities. Applications for funding
must be submitted to Siemens at latest by
January 31, 2010. The World Bank Group will
have audit rights over the use of these
funds and veto rights over the selection by
Siemens of anti-corruption groups or
programs receiving funds.
Instructively, the comprehensive settlement
with Siemens arose out of a World Bank
investigation and the company’s
acknowledgment of past misconduct in its
global business. As part of the settlement,
Limited Liability Company Siemens (OOO
Siemens), a Russian subsidiary of Siemens
AG, has been debarred for four years in
connection with violations committed prior
to 2007. The findings resulted from an
investigation by the World Bank's Integrity
Vice Presidency into fraudulent and corrupt
practices under the Bank-financed "Moscow
Urban Transport Project".
Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global
powerhouse in electronics and electrical
engineering, operating in the industry,
energy and healthcare sectors. For over 160
years, Siemens has stood for technological
excellence, innovation, quality, reliability
and internationality. The company is the
world’s largest provider of environmental
technologies, generating €23 billion –
nearly one-third of its total revenue – from
green products and solutions. In fiscal
2009, which ended on September 30, 2009,
revenue totaled €76.7 billion and net income
€2.5 billion. At the end of September 2009,
Siemens had around 405,000 employees
worldwide.
The World Bank Group is one of the world’s
largest sources of funding and knowledge for
developing countries. It comprises five
closely associated institutions: the
International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (IBRD) and the International
Development Association (IDA), which
together form the World Bank; the
International Finance Corporation (IFC); the
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA);
and the International Centre for Settlement
of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each
institution plays a distinct role in the
mission to fight poverty and improve living
standards for people in the developing
world.
Ghanadot
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