OSACO Group leaders visit OSACO Africa office in Abidjan

During May and June, three members of OSACO Group’s management team spent time based at OSACO Group’s regional office in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. The opportunity to work alongside the team permanently based in Abidjan and to meet with a range of people with shared goals and interests was extremely valuable.

Pictured: OSACO Group Chief of Staff Jonas Frey (far right) with members of the OSACO Africa team. Jonas was based with the OSACO Africa team in Abidjan for a month.

Chief of Staff Jonas Frey spent a month based at the Abidjan office working with the OSACO Africa team and meeting with a range of organisations focused on trade and investment in the region, including CEPICI (Centre for Promotion of Investments in Cote d’Ivoire) and Fondation Sephis. Jonas also met with ecotourism business Living In The Wild which is keen to network with New Zealand ecotourism businesses and to promote what Living In The Wild is doing in central Cote d’Ivoire.

“The overarching theme of the meetings was the desire to exchange and share,” says Jonas. “Whether that be sharing knowledge, technology, or investment, or sharing the passion for creating change in the areas that OSACO Group is focused on such as anti-corruption, supply chain integrity, and the prevention of sexual harassment and abuse. There is nothing like meeting in person and I am proud of OSACO Group’s commitment to its regional office in Abidjan.”

OSACO Group co-founder and Director of Operations Sean Buckley, OSACO Africa Managing Director Alfred Zebi and Global Investigations Coordinator Simon Scott attended the World Bank Group the International Corruption Hunters Alliance (ICHA) 2023 Forum held in Abidjan on June 14-16, 2023. 

The meeting set a new high benchmark for ICHA gatherings and has given a renewed momentum to the work of ICHA members engaged in this vital global agenda. 

This fifth meeting convened more than 350 participants from national government agencies, anticorruption authorities, investigatory and prosecutorial agencies, regional and international organisations, the private sector, and civil society and academia from more than 80 countries, through a platform for direct exchanges to learn from one another and build stronger links in support of collective anticorruption efforts, particularly within West and Central African countries.   

This year’s theme of “Collective Action in an Era of Crises” reflected the importance of strengthening the network of anticorruption actors from diverse sectors and backgrounds, with a focus on areas where anticorruption and development overlap, noting challenges and opportunities in the Africa context. 

“OSACO Group, through our regional office in Cote d’Ivoire, is committed to working with organisations within Africa to develop strategies to combat corruption,” says OSACO Group’s Sean Buckley. “I was Impressed with delegates’ desire to combat corruption. There’s no doubt that corruption is one of the biggest issues facing developing nations and participants agreed that combating corruption needs to be a collaborative effort.”

“We know that there is a real emphasis on the rise of corruption in terms of green washing as there is a significant amount of donor money going into combating the effects of climate change. Organisations need to be vigilant in this area as there is not enough oversight and monitoring.”

OSACO Group’s Simon Scott says that conference provided a great opportunity to meet with people from all over the world involved at different levels in fighting corruption.

“I was especially impressed with the passion and commitment from representatives from some of the poorer countries who are badly affected by endemic corruption, and impressed by their vision of building a better future for their countries.  OSACO Group is well positioned to make a difference throughout Africa in the fight against corruption. Not only can we help manage cases involving corruption, but we can work with Governments to build capacity and capability within their institutions. This is vital in terms of supporting sustainable success in the fight against corruption.”