U4 Helpdesk Query

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South Africa has new anti-corruption legislation - The Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (Act 12 of 2004 - see attached pdf-doc, the act is the third one from bottom on the list of Acts), that entered into force on April 27, 2004. I have been involved in providing some international expertise and comments in its drafting stages through South Africa's Institute for Security Studies who played a very active role in the law's drafting processes through Parliamentary submissions and hearings.

The law thus replaces the 1992 legislation. It is a far more advanced and comprehensive piece of legislation with rather far-reaching provisions, definitions of corruption offences and penalties.

This new law, although not perfect, is probably as close to a regional good practice as you would presently find available in the region and could serve as a good example for other African countries, in at least a number of ways. Of course its success will depend on its implementation and that is an area that we should continue keeping a watchful eye on and take some further lessons as to the challenges and/or success.