The African Union Anti-Corruption Day (AUACD), observed annually on July 11, reaffirms Africa’s commitment to the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (AUCPCC), adopted in 2003. The day provides an opportunity to reflect on progress, raise awareness, and strengthen collective action against corruption across the continent.

Since 2018, the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) has actively commemorated AUACD by collaborating with key stakeholders to engage citizens, particularly young people, through nationwide outreach, education, and community-based initiatives.

This year, the GACC, in alignment with the African Union’s theme: “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent Through Reparations,” is expanding its youth-focused anti-corruption efforts to 40 districts across 16 regions. This year’s initiative, supported by the Hewlett Foundation, aims to raise awareness about corruption, promote civic engagement, and encourage whistleblowing. GACC is leveraging both physical and digital platforms, such as schools, religious institutions, community spaces, and media outlets, to inspire a new generation of youth to lead with integrity, demand accountability from duty bearers, and report corruption.

Young people are often disproportionately affected by corruption. It limits their access to quality education, job opportunities, and public services, while eroding trust in systems meant to serve them. Yet, they also represent one of the most powerful forces for positive change.

GACC recognises that empowering youth to take a stand against corruption is a critical step toward building a more inclusive Ghana, where national development benefits all, not just a few.

In 2024, through its Local Accountability Networks (LANets), GACC empowered 27,667 young people, including first-time voters, across 33 districts in 14 regions, with the knowledge and skills to identify and resist election-related corruption. These sessions, held in 40 senior high schools, 24 junior high schools, and 3 vocational institutions, provided interactive platforms for youth to engage, learn, and act.

As AU Anti-Corruption Day is marked across the continent, GACC calls on Ghanaian youth to take a stand by committing to the 3Rs of fighting Corruption: Resist, Reject, and Report corruption. It is our shared responsibility to support and empower them to become the generation that leads the fight against corruption. We urge families, schools, communities, faith groups, civil society, and the media to stand behind the youth as they promote transparency and justice.

GACC’s AUACD 2025 sensitisation will continue throughout the second and third weeks of July, reinforcing the belief that empowered youth, and protected whistleblowers are central to building a transparent, just, and corruption-free Ghana.