Building integrity in defence institutions
On 25 February, more than 170 representatives from 30 countries and 7 international organizations met in Monterey, California, for a two-day conference entitled "Building Integrity and Defence InstitutionBuilding”.
The event was co-organised by NATO and the Naval Postgraduate School to commemorate both the Alliance’s 60th anniversary and the 100th anniversary of the Naval Postgraduate School. The school is also the only Partnership for Peace (PfP) Training and Education Centre in North America.
Taking stock
At the Bucharest Summit in April 2008, NATO Heads of State and Government agreed to give priority to developing practical tools aimed at building integrity in defence institutions.
The conference gave representatives from government, international organiz ations, industry and civil society the opportunity to take stock of the progress made in the past 12 months, and to exchange views on best practices to help nations meet NATO and other international obligations to build integrity, increase transparency and improve accountability in the defence sector.
The heart of this work is supported through a Building Integrity Trust Fund led by Poland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Voluntary contributions from NATO Allies and PfP Partners are being used to develop three integrity tools - a Self Assessment Questionnaire, Building Integrity courses and a Best Practices Handbook.
Proposals from the Monterey Conference will be presented to the Ambassadors of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. The Self Assessment Questionnaire and the Best Practices Handbook should be available on the NATO web site by the end of 2009.