Doha: The "HH Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award" earns global significance as a first-of-its-kind initiative in this field. It aims to honor individuals and institutions that dedicate their efforts to combating corruption and promoting transparency and integrity on the global stage.
The award is backed by HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani for the UN's message in fighting corruption and organized crime, in addition to enhancing the realization of Goal 16 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in terms of promoting peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all, and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels.
Furthermore, this global initiative strives to shore up good governance and transparency and unleash justice to uproot the scourge of corruption, which poses a profound threat to nations' future, progress, and their peoples' welfare.
The award broadly stems from the State of Qatar's belief in the values of transparency, integrity, and accountability, whose domestic, international, and regional efforts are materialized in consolidating these tenets. It reflects an annual appreciation from HH the Amir for the pioneers in combating corruption and crime at the international level.
Interestingly, the award is not solely restricted to those who combat corruption but also honors individuals globally and motivates governments, academic institutions, media, and civil society to pursue the tenets of the United Nations Convention against Corruption, in addition to understanding these tenets and collaborating to implement them.
The significance of this leading initiative lies in being an anti-corruption tool and supporting development issues in all countries of the world, as well as providing appreciation and backing to all individuals who dedicate their careers to combating corruption or those who have made outstanding contributions domestically and internationally in preventing and combating corruption.
The award highlights the best global practices in combating corruption and recognizes leading models from around the world while working to strengthen, collect, and disseminate them.
It also aims to raise public awareness, enhance support and solidarity, and encourage global initiatives aimed at building corruption-free societies.
Thanks to this global role, the award has witnessed a significant uptick in participation from one edition to another by states, governmental and civil bodies, and relevant institutions worldwide, given its role in raising awareness of the importance of preventing corruption and stimulating the development of effective strategies to combat it at all levels.
The award is presented in collaboration with the UN and encompasses five categories: the Lifetime Achievement or Outstanding Contribution in Combating Corruption, the Academic Research and Educational Materials in Combating Corruption, the Youth Creativity and Engagement in Combating Corruption, the Innovation or Investigative Journalism in Combating Corruption, and the Protection of Sports from Corruption.
The Lifetime Achievement or Outstanding Contribution category focuses on honoring individuals who have devoted their professional lives to combating corruption or have made significant contributions domestically and internationally in this field.
The Academic Research and Educational Materials category targets individuals and entities with research, studies, publications, and works related to understanding the causes of corruption, prevention methods, and promoting knowledge and academic awareness regarding transparency and integrity practices.
In the Youth Creativity and Engagement category, the award emphasizes the importance of involving younger generations, including university students and new employees, in global efforts to combat corruption.
It recognizes that combating corruption is not only a task for the present but also requires forward-thinking and preparedness for the future.
This category seeks to appreciate and encourage youth-led projects supported by civil society organizations or non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
In the Innovation or Investigative Journalism category, the award honors innovators who have developed effective tools contributing to the fight against corruption, with a focus on celebrating those who highlight forms of corruption and their negative impact on communities worldwide.
This category also encourages those who have produced exceptional investigative journalism works that have contributed to uncovering corruption cases across various levels, domestically, regionally, and internationally.
Regarding the Protection of Sports from Corruption category, the award aims to honor individuals and entities that have made effective contributions in safeguarding the sports sector from corrupt practices at both local and regional levels, and who have had a tangible impact in reducing corruption risks in sports.
The award was launched in 2016, with its first ceremony held in Vienna. The second iteration took place at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva in 2017, the third in Malaysia in 2018, the fourth in Rwanda in 2019, the fifth in Tunisia in 2020, the sixth in Qatar in 2022, the seventh in Uzbekistan in 2023, and the eighth in Costa Rica in 2024.
The total number of awardees throughout the previous iterations has reached 58 winners. In 2016, 7 winners received the award; in 2017, 6 winners; in 2018, 8 winners; in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2024, the award went to 7 winners each year; and in 2023, 9 winners were honored.
Across its successive iterations, the award has represented a significant addition to the continuous local, regional, and global efforts and initiatives of Qatar in supporting international bodies and organizations concerned with combating corruption.
The award has succeeded in fostering a global culture that recognizes that sustainable development for all communities hinges on combating corruption and consolidating the rule of law.
It draws attention to the importance of tackling corruption and encouraging the execution of decisive measures and procedures stipulated by the UN Convention, through collecting and disseminating creative and outstanding achievements in anti-corruption projects, honoring exceptional related efforts, and publicly granting awards to recognize them.
Overall, the award reaffirms its global standing by highlighting that combating corruption is an inherent human right, and that living in a corruption-free world across political, economic, social, cultural, health, and other sectors constitutes a fundamental pillar for achieving justice and sustainable development.
