Julie Haggie
Chief Executive Officer
Transparency International NZ
The 2020 Transparency International New Zealand (TINZ) Annual Report was provided to members at the Annual General Meeting on 23rd November. TINZ is very proud of its year of progress as reflected in this report. The mahi was achieved through a combination of expert volunteer inputs, paid staff and good governance.
Annual Report
Please take time to read the TINZ Annual Report. It provides evidence of what can occur when powerful intent is married with energetic and collaborative expertise. It demonstrates the range of our activities including:
Monitoring integrity
One important TINZ activity is to monitor and report on integrity and compliance systems: It started to monitor the recommendations in its National Integrity Systems Assessment this year, contributed a New Zealand chapter on Exporting Corruption, and also provided feedback on the Anti-Corruption Pledge Tracker.
Outreach
TINZ reached out to the wider community during the year through its newsletter and social media, as well as our public forums including webinars.
The COVID-19 year challenged us in several ways, including stepping up to monitor public procurement, and to encourage people to engage in the political debate.
Pacific
TINZ initiated a project to work with Integrity Fiji, which is bearing fruit this year as Integrity Fiji builds its reputation and activities in that country. We are continuing this work with Integrity Fiji and will share news soon of an important research project that we will be commissioning in 2021.
Parliamentary Code of Conduct
TINZ has called for a parliamentary Code of Conduct for several years. So it is very rewarding to see this put in place in 2020, though it may take time for improvements in behaviour to be seen.
Financial Integrity System Assessment
The TINZ Financial Integrity System Assessment (FISA) project moved forward with the launch of this self-assessment. The financial impact of COVID-19 slowed activity in this area but we aim to make further progress in 2021.
Annual General Meeting
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New Zealand Director of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield presents to the TINZ 2020 AGM[/caption]
One thing TINZ is known for is holding memorable events. At last year’s AGM, Her Excellency the Right Honourable Dame Patsy Reddy, the Governor General, spoke, as did Kirsten Patterson, CE of the Institute of Directors. The question was ‘how could we top this in 2021?’
The non availability of our usual ANZ venue gave us the impetus to seek another special venue. We were lucky to have the support of the Speaker of the House of Representatives to use the Grand Hall at Parliament. Grant Thornton hosted the Auckland AGM, at which Marc Rivers from Fonterra agreed to be the keynote speaker.
In Wellington we were privileged to welcome our keynote presenter Dr Ashley Bloomfield, Director-General of Health, who has shown very highest levels of public servant integrity this year. Louisa Wall MP was a very able MC for the overall event.
The evening had a lot of moving parts in addition to Dr Bloomfield’s great presentation: a mihi whakatau to welcome attendees, the election of Directors, the signing of two Memoranda of Understanding, a live video link to Auckland and the farewell for our Chair, Suzanne Snively.
The events’ teams at TINZ, Parliament and Grant Thornton (Auckland), led by Alexandra Mills and well supported by Inge Sternagel-Silao, worked hard to ensure it was a great night.
