Paris, France, 27 March 2018 – Today, at OECD Headquarters in Paris, the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT) spoke at the OECD Global Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum.

“Promoting integrity within the public and private sectors is critical to combating illicit trade in all its forms,” said TRACIT Deputy Director-General Stefano Betti. “TRACIT is honored to be a Knowledge Partner of this Forum and looks forward to working together with the OECD on the issues of illicit trade, integrity and anti-corruption in the coming months.” 

The OECD Global Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum brought together government leaders, policy communities, the private sector, civil society organizations and academia to address challenges to integrity under the theme: “Planet Integrity: Building a Fairer Society.”

Speaking on a panel on “New Perspectives on Integrity,” Mr. Betti presented the structure and objectives of the forthcoming Global Illicit Trade Environment Index that is commissioned by TRACIT and produced by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Based on the analysis of dozens of qualitative and quantitative indicators of country performance in areas such as customs, trade and transparency, governmental policies and supply and demand, the Index will evaluate and rank 84 economies on the extent to which they enable or prevent illicit trade. The full Index will be launched at the end of May.

“This Index will improve the knowledge and understanding of the regulatory environment and economic circumstances that enable illicit trade,” said Mr. Betti. “It will highlight the role of corruption in facilitating illicit trade and help governments identify priority actions to correct the problem.”

More information on the Global Illicit Trade Environment Index is available on TRACIT’s website.

TRACIT is an independent, private sector initiative to drive change to mitigate the economic and social damages of illicit trade by strengthening government enforcement mechanisms and mobilizing businesses across industry sectors most impacted by illicit trade.