About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

56 Int'l J.L. & Mgmt. 3 (2014)

handle is hein.journals/ijlm56 and id is 1 raw text is: The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/1754-243X.htm UK Bribery Act 2010: implications for business in Africa Martina Lagu Yanga Middlesex University, London, UK Abstract Purpose - This article aims to examine some of the implications of the UK Bribery Act (UKBA) 2010 for business in Africa and reviews the effectiveness of strategies African governments have adopted to prevent bribery. The author proposes the development of a bespoke anti-bribery management system (ABMS) based on empirical research. This would help African institutions overcome some of the challenges associated with enforcing regulatory measures formulated in developed countries. Design/methodology/approach - The paper takes the form of a literature review and commentary. Findings - The UKBA has extra-territorial jurisdiction which empowers UK courts to prosecute cases of bribery committed abroad by UK companies and their associates. The risk of prosecution is likely to affect foreign direct investment and official development aid flows to Africa. However, companies can escape prosecution if they can prove that they have adequate procedures in place to prevent bribery. This raises the question as to whether the legislation shifts the responsibility of fighting bribery to under-resourced overseas business partners and supply chains. While most African governments have adopted robust anti-bribery laws, their enforcement is hampered by weak institutions. Research limitations/implications - Empirical research is required to assess the impact of the legislation over the next five years. Practical implications - African organisations must be sensitised about the consequences of violating the UKBA to ensure they adopt appropriate anti-bribery strategies. Originality/value - This article contributes to literature by exploring the development of evidence based ABMS for African organisations which is currently lacking. Keywords Africa, Prevention, Anti-bribery management system, Bribery, Extra-territorial jurisdiction, UKBA Paper type Conceptual paper Introduction The UK Bribery Act (IJKBA) 2010 modernises British anti-corruption laws in order to mitigate the risk of bribery by UK companies around the world. The Act's extraterritorial jurisdiction has far reaching implications for UK businesses, their subsidiaries and supply chains. In addition to criminalising bribery, the legislation creates a new offence of failing to prevent bribery. An organisation can, however, escape prosecution provided that it can prove it had adequate procedures in place to prevent bribery. The UK has a poor record of prosecuting cases of bribery in international business. This raises the question as to whether this legislation exonerates The author would like to thank all those who assisted her during the writing of this article. The author is very grateful to Professor David Lewis at Middlesex University for reading the manuscript and making suggestions for improvements. The author appreciates the constructive comments made by the anonymous reviewer which have contributed to the improved quality of the revised article. All views expressed are those of the author. An earlier version of this article was presented at the Business Ethics Network (BEN-Africa) Conference in Zanzibar in November 2011. UK Bribery Act 2010 3 Received 5 December 2012 Revised 5 December 2012 Accepted 2 May 2013 International Journal of Law and Management Vol. 56 No. 1, 2014 pp. 3-28 © Emerald Group Publishing Limited 1754-243X DOI 10.1108LMVA-12-2012-0040

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most