The OECD staged its 2026 Global Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum this week and both the public and private sectors were given a severe warning that the risks  are becoming ever more acute.

While governments continue to reform their laws, institutions and policies to reduce corruption risks, putting these reforms into practice remains a significant challenge, according to a new OECD report.

Launched at the forum the OECD Anti-Corruption and Integrity Outlook 2026 analyses national integrity systems in 62 countries worldwide, across seven thematic areas: anti-corruption and integrity strategies, lobbying, conflict of interest, political finance, transparency of public information, integrity of the disciplinary system for civil servants and integrity of the justice system.

OECD data showed that across all areas, the average gap between the strength of integrity regulations (63%) and their implementation (44%) in OECD countries stands at 19 percentage points, compared to a 26 percentage-point gap in partner countries. This gap underlines the potential for improvement, as does another finding: only one in four OECD Members – and around half of non-member countries – track the implementation of their anti-corruption strategies.

“Strong anti-corruption and integrity safeguards are the foundation for effective public policy, the efficient use of public resources and a sound environment for business certainty and investment.” OECD secretary-general Mathias Cormann said. “Governments need to step up implementation and close gaps in their frameworks to meet citizens’ expectations for efficient and trustworthy public services and to tackle the growing threat of organised crime. To do this, they can leverage innovative tools such as AI and strengthen engagement with business and civil society.”

Strengthening integrity in justice systems is identified as a key area for further action. While most countries have conflict-of-interest policies in place for judges and prosecutors, these officials only consistently submit required interest declarations in less than one-third of OECD countries. The report suggested that monitoring of conflicts of interest should focus on the highest risk situations, and disclosure of interests should be stronger.

The Outlook highlighted that alongside measures for government, countries are often setting specific strategic objectives to target corruption in the private sector. While this is a positive development, it should be accompanied by additional efforts to safeguard other vulnerable areas, such as state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and public-private partnerships (PPPs).

Economic pressure has always been a catalyst for corruption and global sanctions have created not only a dark merchant fleet but also a complex web of companies and individuals which have been created to subvert the sanctions and ensure the finance to support the new ecosystem.

While many risks facing businesses are recognised, identified and understood corruption and its impact remains far opaquer but none the less a threat.

Jon Guy, Editor,

Emerging Risks