Ministry of Finance Participates in 16th Session of Meetings under the United Nations Convention against Corruption

The Ministry of Finance participated in the 16th session of meetings under the United Nations Convention against Corruption, held from June 16 to 20, 2025, at the United Nations headquarters in Vienna, Austria.

 The ministry emphasized the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to promoting integrity and fair competition in public procurement, as well as to employing all necessary tools to combat, detect, and deter corruption. In pursuit of these goals, the Kingdom has implemented key initiatives and legal measures, including the government procurement e-portal “Etimad.” The platform mandates that all activities and procedures related to public tenders and procurement be conducted through it, ensuring the highest standards of transparency, procedural integrity, and data privacy.

 The “Etimad” platform allows stakeholders and interested parties to access all data related to public tenders. Each government entity is allocated a dedicated record documenting its contracts, announced projects, and related procedures. This empowers oversight bodies to review and verify compliance with applicable regulations and standards.

 The Saudi delegation also highlighted the Kingdom’s efforts to unify technical systems across government entities through the Unified Government Resources Planning System, which ensures that all procurement-related actions are documented even prior to public announcement.

 Furthermore, the delegation underscored the Kingdom’s prioritization of anti-corruption measures by adopting advanced technological tools for continuous oversight, thereby enhancing transparency and accountability in public procurement. In this regard, the Kingdom launched the “Raqeeb” system, which employs artificial intelligence and advanced analytics to detect and prevent fraud and corruption throughout the procurement process.

 “Raqeeb” analyzes data to uncover bid rigging, collusion, price manipulation, preferential practices, and fictitious entities. It supports flexible oversight scenarios that allow for rapid responses to irregular activities, while upholding data privacy and confidentiality.

 The ministry’s participation in this meeting reflects its dedication to supporting international anti-corruption initiatives and contributing to global efforts to promote integrity. It also seeks to learn from the experiences of other nations and international organizations, and to exchange expertise in line with the provisions of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. This participation aligns with Saudi Vision 2030, which places governance, transparency, accountability, and anti-corruption at the core of its foundational pillars.