ShareCAIRO: Vice President of the Kuwait Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha), Nawaf Al-Mahamel, affirmed on Tuesday Kuwait’s commitment to enhance Arab and international cooperation in preventing corruption. In his speech at the fifth session of the Arab anti-corruption convention, Al-Mahamel said that Kuwait took an approach towards developing its institutional legislation and mechanisms for anti-corruption in line with the international and regional legislative development in the field.
He added that Kuwait, represented by Nazaha, was keen to exchange experiences and best practices as well as information with its counterparts, whether through joint memoranda of understanding or even requests for mutual legal assistance. Al-Mahamel explained Nazaha actively participates in Arab and international networks and organizations concerned with combating corruption and was among the first entities to join the global operational network of law enforcement authorities concerned with combating corruption.
He stressed that it is inevitable to adopt and develop technological, digital, and electronic methods of combating corruption, adding that Kuwait seeks to keep pace with the qualitative and technical developments in anti-corruption. International and regional cooperation entities concerned with combating corruption, including the Arab League, must take into account the necessity of consolidating advanced technical and digital technologies, especially after the spread of artificial intelligence.
He noted the possibility of enhancing the effectiveness of developing national legislation directed at corruption by providing opportunities for citizens to participate in the processes of surveying the shortcomings of existing legislation and helping amend and develop them. He touched on the events in the Palestinian territories by saying that today’s conference coincides with cruel events that Palestine has and is still witnessing as a result of the inhumane actions of the Zionist occupation, which are a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.
He stressed the need to strengthen Arab solidarity to consolidate the international rejection of acts of war directed against Palestinians, urging support for them. Nawaf Al-Mahamel headed the Nazaha’s delegation to the Arab anti-corruption convention, which commenced on Tuesday at the General Secretariats of the Arab League’s HQ, chaired by Palestine.
Al-Mahamel championed the integration of technology in the fight against corruption, underscoring Kuwait’s strides in digital transformation and its role in corruption prevention. Al-Mahamel’s remarks were delivered during his participation at the Arab Forum on “Strengthening Anti-Corruption Efforts: Reality and Challenges,” organized under the auspices of the Arab League, the Palestinian Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Cairo.
He underlined the pivotal role of technology and digital transformation in thwarting corruption, especially in the realm of providing public services. The digitization of government services and applications such as “Mobile ID,” “Sahel,” and “Meta” for scheduling government appointments has bolstered integrity and anti-corruption endeavors, he mentioned. These applications have notably streamlined electronic services for citizens and residents, resulting in uninterrupted service provision, decreased bureaucratic hurdles, enhanced speed, transparency, efficiency, and reduced administrative delays, he said.
He underscored the affirmative impacts of governmental digitalization on providing services, including safeguarding information and data, facilitating automatic linkage between governmental bodies, ensuring effective supervision, and advancing sustainable development goals by reducing paper usage. As a keynote speaker in the forum’s second session, Al-Mahamel presented a visual exposition on the transformative role of digitization in enhancing integrity, displaying Kuwait’s pioneering experience in this domain. — KUNA
