UN, World Bank plan to recover billions

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations and the World Bank launched a new initiative on Monday to recover billions of dollars of public money stolen from developing countries every year by corrupt leaders and officials.

The Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative is aimed at giving teeth to provisions of the UN treaty to fight global corruption, which came into force in December 2005, calling for the return of illicit assets. World Bank President Robert Zoellick told a meeting at UN headquarters to launch the initiative that ‘asset theft is a development problem of the first magnitude’.”Many developing countries are hemorrhaging money desperately needed to try to support the attack against poverty,” he said.”By one estimate corrupt money flowing abroad from developing countries is estimated at US$40 billion a year.That amount represents 40 per cent of official development assistance.”UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said “the true cost of corruption far exceeds the value of the assets stolen” because in developing countries, the poor are deprived of health care, education, clean water, sanitation and paved roads.According to a report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Bank, the global proceeds from criminal activities, corruption and tax evasion crossing borders every year from all countries is estimated at between US$1 trillion and US$1,6 trillion.It said assets stolen by corrupt leaders “are frequently of staggering magnitude.”The report cited US$15-35 billion allegedly embezzled by former Indonesian dictator Suharto between 1967-98, US$5-10 billion by the late Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos between 1972-86, US$5 billion by Congo’s late dictator Mobutu Sese Seko from 1965-97, US$2-5 billion by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha from 1993-98, and US$1 billion by the late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic from 1989-2000.Zoellick noted that US$5 billion “is more than what Nigeria’s federal government spent in 2006 on education and health.”That money could also have provided between two and three million Nigerians suffering from HIV/AIDS with anti-retroviral drugs for 10 years, he said.As for the Philippines, he said, it took 18 years to recover just US$620 million of Marcos’ money, “and it will be many decades before it recovers from the devastating consequences of his actions.”Nampa-APWorld Bank President Robert Zoellick told a meeting at UN headquarters to launch the initiative that ‘asset theft is a development problem of the first magnitude’.”Many developing countries are hemorrhaging money desperately needed to try to support the attack against poverty,” he said.”By one estimate corrupt money flowing abroad from developing countries is estimated at US$40 billion a year.That amount represents 40 per cent of official development assistance.”UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said “the true cost of corruption far exceeds the value of the assets stolen” because in developing countries, the poor are deprived of health care, education, clean water, sanitation and paved roads.According to a report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Bank, the global proceeds from criminal activities, corruption and tax evasion crossing borders every year from all countries is estimated at between US$1 trillion and US$1,6 trillion.It said assets stolen by corrupt leaders “are frequently of staggering magnitude.”The report cited US$15-35 billion allegedly embezzled by former Indonesian dictator Suharto between 1967-98, US$5-10 billion by the late Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos between 1972-86, US$5 billion by Congo’s late dictator Mobutu Sese Seko from 1965-97, US$2-5 billion by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha from 1993-98, and US$1 billion by the late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic from 1989-2000.Zoellick noted that US$5 billion “is more than what Nigeria’s federal government spent in 2006 on education and health.”That money could also have provided between two and three million Nigerians suffering from HIV/AIDS with anti-retroviral drugs for 10 years, he said.As for the Philippines, he said, it took 18 years to recover just US$620 million of Marcos’ money, “and it will be many decades before it recovers from the devastating consequences of his actions.”Nampa-AP