Held against a backdrop of growing global awareness of corruption’s harmful effects, this event builds on the work of the Human Rights Council, notably resolution 59/6 adopted in July 2025. That resolution enshrines the now widely accepted idea that fighting corruption and protecting fundamental rights are intrinsically linked and mutually reinforcing. International commitments—whether the United Nations Convention against Corruption, the 2011 Marrakech Declaration, or the UNGASS 2021 political declaration—all stress the need for a preventive approach rooted in respect for the rule of law, democracy, and human rights.
In this context, Morocco aimed to showcase its integrated approach, which merges public policies, national institutions, and international commitments. Moderating the discussions, Ambassador Omar Zniber, Morocco’s permanent representative to the United Nations in Geneva, underscored the initiative’s importance, calling it “very significant” at the multilateral level. He highlighted “the contributions of senior Moroccan officials” and “Morocco’s role as a leader in this process at the United Nations,” emphasizing coordinated mobilization of national institutions and alignment with the kingdom’s strategic directions on transparency and governance.
For his part, the interministerial delegate for human rights, El Habib Belkouch, shifted the debate to a more fundamental ground, noting that “corruption also constitutes a major obstacle to the effective enjoyment of human rights.” Moving beyond traditional approaches focused on governance or repression, he insisted on its concrete effects: “When it affects access to justice, healthcare, education, or employment, it deprives individuals of legitimate rights.”
El Habib Belkouch recalled that “every resource misappropriated or wasted due to corruption is a resource that is no longer available to fund a school, a hospital, or a public policy,” illustrating the direct impact of this phenomenon on citizens’ daily lives. He also drew attention to the fact that its effects “often weigh more heavily on the most vulnerable groups,” notably women and marginalized populations.
Emphasizing the responses needed, he stated that “prevention appears today as one of the most effective levers,” highlighting key principles such as “transparency, the right of access to information, citizen participation, and accountability,” which he described not only as fundamental rights but also as “essential tools for preventing corruption.” He finally argued for strengthened synergies between institutions, noting that their coordination is “a major priority to improve the effectiveness of public policies.”
A similar message came from Mohamed Benalilou, president of the National Authority for Probity, Prevention and the Fight against Corruption, who gave this link an even more structural dimension. According to him, the connection between these two fields “is progressively evolving toward a structural interdependence,” reflecting a profound transformation in analytical and action frameworks.
Adopting a victim-centered approach, he stressed that “it is no longer just about misappropriated funds, but about real victims of corruption deprived of their rights,” calling for moving beyond traditional paradigms. He also shed light on dimensions still insufficiently considered, such as “gender-based corruption,” which he views as “an intrinsic obstacle to equality.”
Mohamed Benalilou further insisted on a major conceptual turning point, stating that “corruption prevention is evolving into a positive obligation for states to protect rights and freedoms.” In this logic, it becomes “an essential element of human rights due diligence.”
He also argued for “preserving civic space” and “recognizing whistleblowers as human rights defenders,” while calling for a transition toward a model of “institutional integrity,” where institutions “are not limited to the absence of corruption but actively protect rights and guarantee equality.”
On the international front, he stressed the need to “ensure greater coherence between the Geneva, Vienna, and New York processes,” noting that obligations under the United Nations Convention against Corruption and those related to human rights “are two sides of the same commitment.” He thus called for the establishment of “structural bridges” between institutions and the emergence of “preventive governance based on human rights.”
Throughout the exchanges, a consensus emerged among participants on the urgent need to strengthen synergies among the various actors—states, international institutions, and civil society—to make corruption prevention a key lever for protecting human rights. Emphasis was placed on the role of education, capacity building, citizen participation, and digital technologies, considered indispensable tools for promoting good governance, enhancing transparency, and preventing abuses.
