Gambia is the 93 least corrupt nation out of 175 countries, according to the 2018 Corruption Perceptions Index
The ambassador of the European Union to the Gambia has urged authorities to establish measures to tackle corruption in the country.
The EU representative Attila Lajos was speaking on Friday at the Kairaba Avenue where several dignitaries across the region converged to launch the Regional Competition Authority, an body mandated to regulate inter and intra trade within countries in the region.
“I want to take this opportunity as the ambassador of the European Union in The Gambia to call on the government of the Gambia to structure anti-corruption measures including the establishment of the national anti-corruption commission that will contribute to promote justice in administration,” said Lajos.
Gambia has repeatedly being ranked one of the corrupt countries on the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index.
However, the country improved in 2019 making it the 93 least corrupt nation out of 175 countries, according to the 2018 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Corruption Rank in Gambia averaged 114.38 from 2003 until 2018, reaching an all-time high of 158 in 2008 and a record low of 77 in 2011.
Gambia Government has expressed intent since 2017 to establish an anti-corruption commission.
The proposed bill which will establish the act setting up the Commission has been validated since 2017 but the institution remains a pipedream.
Meanwhile, the regional authorities have formally launched the Ecowas Regional Competition Authority that will regulate competition among countries within the region.
The Competition Authority is established to implement the Regional Competition Rules adopted by the ECOWAS Authority in 2008.
The Rules are essentially to promote, maintain and encourage competition and enhance economic efficiency in production, trade and commerce at the regional level.
Being a specialized agency with adjudicatory and investigative powers, ERCA also has a core mandate of keeping under review commercial activities in the Community market with a view to ascertaining practices which may distort the efficient operations of the market conduct or which may adversely affect the economic interest of consumers.
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