'International cooperation needed to fight graft'
Justice secretary Paul Lam on Wednesday praised the ICAC for its graft prevention education programme linked to the Belt and Road Initiative, saying international cooperation is needed to fight corruption.  Local and Macau representatives, as well as participants from 13 Asian and African countries joined the week-long programme, which was aimed at rooting out corrupt practices in major infrastructural projects.  It included site visits to places like the Hong Kong International Airport and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. Those who took part in the programme said they’ve had a rewarding experience.  "We can share experience and take with us many, many new schemes," said Hawaly Kone, an auditor investigator from Mali.  "Some challenges we might be facing in my country, when I talked to the other [participants], they have already been facing those challenges before, so they can give the solution."  Principal Investigator of the ICAC's Operations Department, Paul Lau, said the anti-graft watchdog was also able to benefit from the exchange. "Anti-corruption work is boundary-less because of the transnational nature of this crime, so in order to achieve the goal of zero corruption in the whole world, we really have to work together with different regions and countries," he said. Speaking at the programme's closing ceremony, meanwhile, the secretary for justice said an International Anti-Corruption Academy will be established in February to enhance international anti-graft cooperation.  "The establishment of the International Anti-Corruption Academy is a milestone in Hong Kong's efforts to join hands with other jurisdictions to fight against corruption together," Lam said. "International cooperation is indeed critical to the fight against corruption, in particular in the context of the Belt and Road Initiative."