Latest news with #UnitedNationsCommissiononInternationalTradeLaw
New Straits Times
15 hours ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
Dewan Rakyat passes Cross-Border Insolvency Act 2025
KUALA LUMPUR: The Dewan Rakyat today passed the third reading of the Cross-Border Insolvency Act 2025, which provides a long-awaited legal framework to govern cross-border insolvency proceedings in Malaysia. The Act incorporates international principles from the 1997 United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency, whhich will increase cooperation between courts and authorities in Malaysia and other nations involved in cross-border insolvency. The bill was passed at its third reading after being debated by 11 members of the lower house of parliament. Cases on cross-border insolvency currently operate on the practice of the courts to recognise foreign court decisions or proceedings on the basis of mutual understanding – the doctrine of comity – and on cooperation using the principle of reciprocity, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said in parliament today. The absence of such law had caused delays in the implementation of corporate rescue mechanisms or company winding-up proceedings. Previously, the assets of the companies involved were also at risk of being hidden or transferred to inappropriate parties, which may affect the collection and production of assets for the benefit of creditors, debtors and stakeholders and reduce foreign investor confidence.
New Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
Bill adopting UN model law on cross-border insolvency tabled
KUALA LUMPUR: A bill incorporating international principles on cross-border insolvency was tabled for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat today, aimed at increasing cooperation between courts and authorities in Malaysia and other nations involved in cross-border insolvency. Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said tabled the bill, which adopts the main principles of the 1997 United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency. Its preamble states that the bill is intended to protect the interests of creditors, debtors and relevant parties while preserving and maximising the value of the debtor's assets. It also seeks to facilitate the rescue of financially distressed businesses to safeguard investments and preserve jobs. However, the bill does not apply to the insolvency or bankruptcy of individuals under the Insolvency Act 1967, limited liability partnerships (LLPs) and foreign LLPs under the LLP Act 2012, among others.
Daily Maverick
11-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
How to foster a culture of integrity in SA's public sector
As we observe Africa Anti-Corruption Day on Friday, 11 July — marking 22 years since the adoption of the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption — it is hard not to feel despondent about the state of corruption on the continent. In particular, African public procurement systems are affected by an insidious form of corruption that wastes resources, stymies development, hampers governments' ability to provide basic services, increases inequality, entrenches poverty and supports other forms of lawlessness and criminality. Public sector corruption manifests in public procurement because of the high volume of transactions, the multiplicity of regulations and procedures, the amount of discretion available to procurement officials, the asymmetry of information, the large sums of money at stake, and a private sector overly reliant on government support. Procurement frameworks in Africa are governed by laws inspired by the work of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and institutions like the World Bank. These frameworks are admittedly complex, bureaucratic and not well-suited to the capacity constraints in many African countries. However, the corruption within our procurement systems cannot solely be attributed to our institutional challenges or capacity issues. In South Africa, we have laws and policies aimed at fostering integrity and accountability in the public sector, prohibiting and criminalising corruption, and protecting whistleblowers who report it. Laws on public financial management and procurement also contain several prescripts for managing public funds and the procurement process. Notwithstanding the robustness of these laws and policies, they cannot address the corruption challenges we face. The implementation and enforcement of our laws are sadly lacking, despite the best efforts of agencies like the Special Investigating Unit, the National Prosecuting Authority and the Office of the Public Protector. This raises important considerations that are often overlooked in efforts to prevent and address corruption: people, culture and payment. Laws and policies are only as good as their implementation — even the most robustly drafted laws and well-intentioned policies will fail if poorly implemented or deliberately undermined. If officials fail to implement our procurement and anti-corruption laws, we should focus on their character and ethics. Three key issues From an anti-corruption perspective, three key issues deserve attention. First, how can we hire people whose innate character supports our goals of a 'capable, ethical and developmental state'? Still related to people: How do we address the failures of leadership in the public sector? Second, how do we change the public sector culture so that integrity and good governance become the norm? Third, corruption procurement scandals often involve large sums of money, suggesting that unethical contractors can get paid, even when they fail to meet contractual obligations. Private sector participants who abuse the procurement system are often more interested in getting paid than in delivering on public contracts. The contract only serves as the means of access to public funds. This raises the issue of tightening payment controls in the public sector. The unending struggles with procurement corruption suggest that we need to devote serious attention to recruitment practices and performance management in the public sector. South Africa is due for an overhaul of the public sector recruitment process. This is especially important for the roles that control public spending and enforce our laws. To provide a few examples of recent failings, in June this year, several senior police officials were arrested for their involvement in procurement corruption. In March, procurement officials were arrested in connection with fraud and corruption at Eskom, and there were convictions related to personal protective equipment procurement fraud in KwaZulu-Natal. These arrests and convictions point to shortcomings in the character of some officials, as well as potential inadequacies in the recruitment and promotion process for public servants — both of which compromise law enforcement and ethical procurement. The recruitment (and promotion) of unethical persons in the public service is extremely dangerous. It breeds systemic corruption — a situation where law enforcement and accountability measures are themselves compromised, making it impossible to address corruption in a meaningful way. It also creates impunity and disorder, which will spread into every area of public and private life. Some African countries have already descended into the chaos brought about by systemic corruption, where life has become intolerable for most citizens. Competence, character and integrity In re-examining public sector recruitment processes, we can draw on private sector approaches to ensure officials at all levels are the kind of people who can secure the future that South Africans so desperately yearn for. Public recruitment practices must focus on competence, character and integrity. Generally, well-educated employees can be trained in the specifics of their roles, but unethical people cannot be trained to be ethical. We must adopt recruitment strategies that regard integrity as a core skill set for employment in the public sector. In the private sector, recruiters look for candidates with the right qualifications and technical skills, and who are also a good fit in terms of culture, ethics and values. In South Africa, tests for ethics and values are often a part of recruitment or promotion to senior public sector roles. This is, however, counterintuitive as new hires should also possess the desired character. Although there is no fail-safe means of determining the depth of a person's integrity, private sector recruiters use different methods to assess a candidate's values. These include strategic screening, interviews, references, proper background checks, behavioural tests, ethical dilemma scenarios, assessments such as the 'Honesty-Humility' scale (from the Hexaco personality model, which measures sincerity, fairness, greed avoidance and modesty), and ethics or situational judgment tests. Persons with high scores on the Honesty-Humility scale avoid manipulating others for personal gain, resist the temptation to break rules, and show little interest in lavish wealth. Conversely, persons with low scores are inclined to break rules for personal profit, are motivated by material gain and driven by a strong sense of self-importance. These types of assessments should be mandatory in public sector recruitment. Addressing the failure of ethical leadership will require not only improvement in recruitment and culture changes, but also the willingness and moral fortitude of political parties to look inward, transform their internal cultures and appoint individuals with a proven track record of competence and integrity to high-level positions. An anti-corruption campaign cannot be successful when it is led by unethical people. Culture change Fostering a culture of integrity in the public sector requires culture change — the most difficult, yet most transformative process an organisation can undertake. Since the public sector consists of thousands of devolved units, culture change must occur within these units, guided by an overarching national objective. Culture change requires a clear articulation of the desired culture, a diagnosis of the existing culture, a process to align leadership behaviours with the desired culture, and steps to embed it in organisational processes such as recruitment, onboarding, performance management, reward, recognition and values-based decision-making. If we can change the culture in the public sector, we can change the outcomes. We also need to tighten the controls around public contract payments to reduce losses from fraudulent invoices, payments for non-delivery and payments lacking adequate documentation. After 25 years of researching and teaching public procurement and anti-corruption law, I am convinced that while legal frameworks are necessary, it is the level of attention and intention given to people and culture in the public sector that will most effectively address our corruption challenges. South Africa is filled with brilliant, decent, morally courageous and ethical people. It is time those people were given a fair chance at public service. DM
The Star
10-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
Malaysia to strengthen legal foundations to boost trade, says Azalina
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is intensifying efforts to boost regional trade and establish a strong legal foundation for emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), in line with its role as Asean chair this year, says Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said. The Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) said Malaysia continues to liberalise its market through initiatives such as the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone and strategic partnerships with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and China. "Asean has made meaningful progress in eliminating intra-regional tariffs. The next step is to reduce non-tariff barriers and improve regulatory alignment to ensure seamless trade," she said in her keynote address at the SCG Legal Regional Meeting 2025 Asia and Pacific Rim, here Thursday (July 10). Azalina said Malaysia is undertaking key legal reforms including a review of the Contracts Act 1950 and the Sale of Goods Act 1957, alongside the development of a Cross-Border Insolvency Act aligned with United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) standards. On the digital front, Azalina said the government is drafting a comprehensive artificial intelligence (AI) law focused on ethics and governance, with the aim of supporting safe, responsible and competitive innovation. "This initiative reflects Malaysia's proactive stance in regulating AI to ensure we keep pace with technological advancement while safeguarding public trust. "The planned legal framework for AI complements broader reforms in governance, anti-corruption, and human rights, aimed at positioning Malaysia as a legally sound and economically vibrant nation," she added. The SCG Legal Regional Meeting is global network of leading law firms, and bring together regional legal and business leaders to address pressing cross-border legal developments and foster strategic collaboration across Asia-Pacific. - Bernama
Daily Tribune
02-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Tribune
Forfaiting a Lucrative option
Forfaiting started in the middle of last Century in Europe and it is taking shape all over the globe to promote trade finance and boost relationship between exporters and importers. In this context, the ICC Rules for Forfaiting (URF 800), aimed to create a standard set of rules to be applied within the forfaiting market worldwide, moreover, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNICITRAL) endorsed (URF 800). Needless to say, this is good work for ICC, as this rule and the other rules of UCP 600, URDG 758, etc., show the ICC commitment to promote international trade. Forfaiting is a method of trade finance that allows exporters to obtain cash by selling their medium and long-term foreign accounts receivable at a discount on 'without recourse' basis. Forfaiting can be undertaken by banks or finance firms that perform non-recourse export financing through the purchase of trade receivables. 'Without recourse' or 'non-recourse' means accepting the risk of non-payment. Forfaiting eliminates risk of non-payment once the goods have been delivered to the foreign buyer, in accordance with the agreed sale terms. Advantages of forfaiting include, inter alia, elimination of all risk to the exporter with full financing of contract value, exporters can offer medium and long-term financing in markets where the credit risk would otherwise be high, forfaiting works with bills of exchange, promissory notes, or a letter of credit, foreign buyers provide bank guarantee, letter of guarantee or LCs and financing can be arranged on a one-shot basis at fixed or floating interest rate. Once forfaiter commits to the deal and sets the discount rate, the exporter can incorporate the discount into the selling price. The exporter then accepts a commitment issued by the forfaiter, signs the contract with the importer, and obtains, if required, a guarantee from the bank of the importer that provides the documents required to complete the forfaiting. The exporter delivers the goods to the importer and delivers the documents to the forfaiter who verifies them and pays as agreed in the deal. Since this payment is without recourse, the exporter has no further interest in the financial aspects of the transaction and it is the forfaiter who must collect the future payments due from the importer. The cost of forfaiting to the exporter is determined by the agreed rate of discount for the tenor of the receivables and a margin reflecting the risk being sold. In addition, there are certain costs that are borne by the importer that the exporter should also take into consideration. The degree of risk varies based on the importing country, the length of the loan, the currency of the transaction, and the repayment structure. The higher the risk, the higher the margin and therefore the discount rate. However, forfaiting can be more cost-effective than traditional trade finance tools because of many attractive benefits it offers to the exporter. We believe, it is a beneficial advisable tool to interested parties to promote trade finance.
