Sweden To Train Defense And Security Companies To Combat Corruption

The Swedish Defense and Security Export Agency (FXM) announced Monday that it along with the Swedish Security and Defense Industry Association (SOFF) are presenting a joint anti-corruption training to strengthen companies in the defense and security industry.

The web-based course is planned to help companies to combat corruption and to inspire them to further work and knowledge on this area.

SOFF is planning to place as a requirement that all companies linked to the organization undertake the course and FXM will be urging the companies that seek support from the Agency to do so. The course will also be compulsory for employees at FXM. SOFF is the first industrial organization in the world working in the field of defense to have developed an online training in the field of anti-corruption.

The course combines information on the legislation in this field and exercises and tips on how to undertake further work on these issues. 

“It is extremely important to work on these questions. Corruption is unethical, illegal and distorts competition to the disadvantage of the competitive actor. The more competition there is, the better it is for those manufacturing high-tech and cost-efficient products in the way that we do in Sweden. I think that we should make anti-corruption efforts a Swedish profile issue. To make the Swedish trademark stand for the incorruptible. One of the ways of avoiding corruption is, in fact, having a trademark where we are perceived as being transparent and incorruptible,” says FXM Director-General Ulf Hammarström.

“Corruption hampers open competition. No market is immune to it, but the risks in the defence market are often greater since business must sometimes be surrounded by security policy and commercial secrecy. This places great demands on responsible behaviour on the part of security and defence companies by requiring them to develop their anti-corruption efforts further and refrain from business where the risks are too large,” Robert Limmergard, SOFF’s Secretary-General said.