Accounting Weekly

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South Africa Tightens Anti-Corruption Laws, Making Failure to Prevent Corruption a Criminal Offense

President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed a law making it a criminal offense for both state and private companies in South Africa to fail to prevent corruption, including activities by third-party consultants. Companies will now be liable unless they have "adequate procedures" in place to prevent such corrupt activities. This legislation emphasizes the importance of robust anti-corruption policies within organizations to avoid liability.

The legislation President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law is an amendment to the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (Precca). This amendment aims to enhance South Africa's anti-corruption efforts by holding companies accountable for preventing bribery and graft within their operations and by associates.

Source:

https://www.news24.com/fin24/companies/its-now-an-offence-for-a-firm-to-fail-to-prevent-corruption-but-theres-a-way-around-it-20240411