The employees in the government sector, generally known as civil servants, are the vital link between the government and the general public of a country. They are expected to mirror the character of the government in its dealings with the people, so they have a responsibility to possess a polished behaviour, which should make the visitors to the offices of different government agencies feel welcome and comfortable. They should be transparent in their dealings and should serve the nation with utmost integrity and sincerity.
Qatar, through several legislations and charters have been spreading this message across all sectors of government and has been conducting training programmes for government staff to make them familiar with the regulations. As part of these efforts the Ministry of Administrative Development Labour and Social Affairs, represented by the Institute of Public Administration, concluded a meeting on the Code of Conduct and Integrity of Public Officials in cooperation with the Administrative Control and Transparency Authority (ACTA) yesterday.
Qatar had issued a Code of Conduct and Integrity for public officials as Cabinet Decision No. 18 of 2020 and ratified by H H the Amir, which specifies behavioural standards for public sector employees mainly honesty, objectivity, fairness, equality, transparency and integrity. The Charter of Integrity of Public Officials is considered one of the ACTA’s competencies under Item 5 of Integrity of the Amiri Resolution No. 6 of 2015, in the reorganisation of ACTA.
The charter is consistent with international standards such as the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, the International Code of Conduct for Public Officials issued by the UN General Assembly and code of conduct and civil service ethics in many countries. It defines the job behaviours, public job ethics, transparency, integrity etc to enhance confidence in the public service and give more protection to public funds.
Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in his address to the 48th session of the Shura Council in 2019 stressed on the deep sense of duty by the citizen towards the society and homeland. Citizenship includes rights not privileges. It doesn’t only involve rights but also responsibilities and duties, foremost among them is to work sincerely and with precision, each in his position, as each position is important.
Qatar, with its tireless efforts in making the services it provide fully transparent, could place itself at the upper rungs of the ladder of a few corruption-free countries.
The Transparency International affirmed this through its Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) ranking Qatar 32nd out of 180 countries in the world.
