The Implementation Review Mechanism of the United Nation Conventions against Corruption (UNCAC)
Published
The United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) is the only legally binding universal anti-corruption instrument. The Convention was adopted by the UN General Assembly in October 2003 and entered into force in December 2005. Sweden ratified the Convention in September 2007. The Convention covers the following main areas: preventive measures, criminalisation and law enforcement, international cooperation, asset recovery, and technical assistance and information exchange.
The Convention contains a Review Mechanism aimed at helping States Parties implement the Convention. The first cycle of the Review Mechanism covered the period 2010–2015 and included Chapters 3 and 4 of the Convention (criminalisation and law enforcement, and international cooperation). The second cycle was launched in 2015 and covers Chapters 2 and 5 (preventive measures and asset recovery).
Evaluations are primarily based on a self-assessment checklist. Initially, the reviewed state is to fill in a form with information on how the Convention has been implemented. The reviewed state may also propose a country visit for further discussion. The data provided by the reviewed state and the conclusions and recommendations of the expert review team are presented both in an executive summary and a final country review report.
An Implementation Review Group has been set up to monitor and improve the review process. It serves as a forum for the States Parties to exchange experiences and review the country reports.
Reviews of Sweden
Sweden was reviewed within the framework of the first review cycle in 2012–2014. The reviewing countries were France and Canada.
The last review of Sweden began in 2019. The reviewing countries were Belgium and Lesotho. Sweden submitted a self-assessment form with information on how Swedish law complies with the provisions of the Convention in October 2019. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the planned country visit that was to be held in Stockholm was postponed until June 2022. Sweden has subsequently received a final country review report.
Sweden has chosen to publish all relevant documents pertaining to the reviews on the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) website.