Lithuania has taken an important step on the road to OECD membership by completing the process to become a member of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention. Lithuania will become the 42nd Party to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention on 15 July 2017, 60 days after the deposit of its instrument of accession. The Ambassador of Lithuania to France, Dalius Äekuolis, deposited Lithuania's instrument of accession to the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions at the OECD Headquarters in Paris on 16 May, 2017.
“Lithuania has given a clear sign of its commitment to combat bribery and corruption,” said OECD Secretary-General, Angel Gurría. “We welcome Lithuania as the 42nd Party to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, and look forward to working closely together in the fight against transnational bribery.”
On 26 January 2017, the OECD invited Lithuania to join the OECD Working Group on Bribery and to take the necessary steps to accede to the Convention. Lithuania will now undergo systematic reviews on the implementation of its anti-bribery laws, starting with a first examination in June 2017.
The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, which entered into force in 1999, prohibits the bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions. Through country monitoring and extensive peer-led follow-up, the Convention seeks to ensure that the fight against bribery is effective, thus creating a level playing field for fair competition.
In addition to Lithuania, the 35 OECD member countries plus Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Russia and South Africa are Parties to the Convention.