Sarawak strengthens its integrity, strengthens cooperation with the IACA

KUCHING, Oct 27: The Government of Sarawak will host the Sarawak Regional Governance Leadership Programme 2026 in cooperation with the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) based in Vienna, Austria to strengthen the competence of integrity officers in corruption prevention and good governance practices.

Deputy Minister in the Sarawak Department of Premier (Integrity and Ombudsman), Datuk Dr Juanda Jaya said that the programme involves 70 Sarawak Certified Integrity Officers (CeIOs) to enhance their ability to identify weaknesses and strengthen integrity practices within their respective agencies.

"This disclosure is expected to broaden the knowledge of integrity officers and enable them to apply best practices in their respective agencies, thus producing professional, confident, principled and bold officials who reprimand weaknesses and non-compliances based on facts and regulations", he said.

He said this at a press conference of Sarawak Regional Governance Leadership Programme 2026 in Kuching, today.

The four-day programme is scheduled to take place from 2 to 5 November at the Pullman Kuching Hotel, with content adapted from IACA's flagship program, Regional Summer Academy (RSA), before being tailored to Sarawak's public service context and needs.

The promotion is the first collaboration in Borneo between the Integrity Unit and the Sarawak Ombudsman (UNIONS), Sarawak Centre of Performance Excellence Sdn. Bhd. (SCOPE) and IACA.

According to Juanda, the programme focuses on four main themes: international cooperation and integrity, innovation in corruption prevention, good governance and ethical leadership as well as corruption reporting and accountability.

In related developments, he said, UNIONS and IACA will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as the basis for long-term cooperation especially in capacity building, knowledge exchange and professional development in the field of integrity and corruption prevention.

"This collaboration also opens up opportunities for Sarawak civil servants, especially CeIO, to explore participation in the IACA-sponsored Regional Summer Academy, whether at the academy itself or abroad", he said.