At the 11th session of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) Conference of the States Parties (CoSP11), held in Doha, Qatar from 15 to 19 December, over 190 States Parties convened to agree on policy priorities guiding national implementation of the UNCAC – the world’s only comprehensive and legally binding anti-corruption treaty.
The Wildlife Justice Commission participated both in its own capacity and in its role as Chair of the Working Group on Environmental Crime and Corruption (WG ECC) of the Global Civil Society Coalition for the UNCAC, which brings together more than 230 civil society organisations worldwide. Through this role, and building on sustained, coordinated engagement over several years, Wildlife Justice advocated for civil society-driven recommendations at CoSP11, contributing expert input and policy proposals aimed at strengthening the global response to corruption enabling crimes that affect the environment (CAE) and ensuring that international commitments translate into more effective prevention and enforcement measures on the ground.
Corruption notoriously fuels CAE – including wildlife trafficking – accelerating biodiversity loss, undermining climate action, and causing often irreversible harm to communities, economies, security, public health, and the rule of law. Addressing corruption is therefore essential to protecting people and planet.
This year’s Conference marked a pivotal moment: States adopted a dedicated resolution – an agreed policy decision that sets priorities and provides guidance to State Parties – on preventing and combatting corruption as it relates to CAE.
Coordinating civil society advocacy for a strong resolution on corruption facilitating CAE
For several years – including at the previous CoSP in 2023 – Wildlife Justice and the WG ECC have consistently called for stronger recognition and action on the corruption–CAE-climate nexus, building on CoSP resolution 8/12 (2019). While that resolution acknowledged the linkages between corruption and CAE, it left important gaps, particularly as environmental and climate-related threats have intensified since 2019.
This advocacy has included coordinating civil society action, publishing an open letter signed by over 300 NGOs and experts from 99 countries calling for a strong resolution in 2023, a discussion paper on combatting corruption and CAE to advance climate protection goals, a written statement to CoSP11, and a compendium of both gaps and good practices in UNCAC implementation related to corruption, CAE, and climate.
At CoSP11, a resolution on preventing and combatting corruption as it relates to CAE was tabled by Brazil and Namibia, and ultimately adopted by consensus, marking the culmination of sustained, coordinated efforts to elevate this issue within the UNCAC framework.
Throughout the Conference, in our role as Chair of the WG ECC, we coordinated civil society advocacy to promote concrete, action-oriented measures to ensure that the resolution translates into real-world impact.
To support these discussions, Wildlife Justice co-organised and moderated a side event, “Accountability for Corruption and Crimes in the Environment”, as part of the Conference’s theme day, “Hands on: Countering corruption for a more sustainable future”. The event, supported by Colombia, France, Peru, Brazil’s Council for Financial Activities Control (COAF), INTERPOL, and Basel Institute on Governance, brought together experts from COAF, INTERPOL, a French Magistrate from Cabinet Navacelle, the FIU of Papua New Guinea, and NGO The Sentry.
Drawing on real-world experience, speakers examined how effective enforcement of the UNCAC can help dismantle organised criminal networks involved in CAE. Discussions focused on challenges and lessons learned in leveraging UNCAC enforcement provisions, such as special investigative techniques, anti-money laundering tools, joint investigations, as well as the importance of financial intelligence units, cross-border and multi-stakeholder cooperation. The breadth of the corruption-CAE nexus was also highlighted, linking it to serious crimes including terrorist financing, making it a national security risk. The event provided actionable insights to strengthen enforcement and hold high-level perpetrators accountable, while highlighting practitioners’ perspectives on the key elements of a strong resolution.
In addition, Wildlife Justice delivered oral statements under the General Debate and International Cooperation agenda items, highlighting investigative findings on how corruption facilitates all levels of environmental and wildlife crime and reiterating the need for strong, action-oriented commitments.
Highlights from the resolution
The resolution on preventing and combatting corruption as it relates to CAE is significant because it includes commitments to:
- Strengthen UNCAC implementation to tackle corruption facilitating CAE, including through reporting on lessons learned and challenges, and scaling up good practices to identify needs and to inform technical assistance, capacity building, and national policy development efforts, and to generally support the effective implementation of the Convention;
- Reinforce enforcement and international cooperation, including cross-border sharing of information and investigative assistance in criminal, civil, and administrative matters; accountability of both legal and natural persons responsible for such acts; and making use of special investigative techniques, joint investigations, and asset recovery;
- Address major corruption risks by encouraging public oversight and awareness, strengthening transparency and integrity in public procurement, beneficial ownership disclosure, and by tackling the role of enablers;
- Protect and enable civil society participation, including safeguards for reporting persons.
The preamble also acknowledges the vital role played by intergovernmental organisations, the media, civil society, reporting persons, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and the private sector in addressing this issue.
We also welcome the adoption of another CoSP11 resolution on “Strengthening the implementation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption in small island developing States”, which recognises that climate change poses an existential threat to these States, and the importance of reinforcing governance of climate finance – an issue strongly advocated for by the WG ECC.
Supporting civil society priorities beyond the resolution
Alongside its resolution-focused advocacy, Wildlife Justice also endorsed the Doha Civil Society Declaration, which outlines recommendations for the next two years of the UNCAC CoSP presidency. The Declaration supports inclusive multilateralism, meaningful civil society participation, and more effective UNCAC implementation. It also underscores areas requiring strengthened commitments, while drawing attention to critical concerns, including the shrinking of civic space and the growing risks this poses to effective anti-corruption efforts.
Looking ahead
While the adoption of this resolution marks an important milestone, its value will ultimately depend on how effectively it is implemented. Turning commitments made in Doha into tangible results will require sustained political will, adequate resources, and meaningful civil society engagement coordinated action at national, regional, and international levels.
States Parties must now focus on applying the UNCAC in practice to corruption cases linked to CAE: strengthening prevention, enforcement, and international cooperation; scaling up special investigative techniques, joint investigations, financial investigations, and asset recovery; and embedding transparency and accountability across high-risk sectors and value chains. Robust follow-up, reporting, and technical assistance will be essential.
We stand ready to continue working with States, international partners, and civil society to support the effective implementation of the resolution and the UNCAC more broadly, helping to close enforcement gaps, share good practices, and build the capacity needed to protect ecosystems and communities from the most harmful impacts of corruption.
Efforts to combat CAE are likely to fail unless corruption is tackled – and States must now translate commitment into action.
