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anism . What happens when trust is not an embedded quality as suggested by Ouchi ’ s Clans or Stafsudd ’ s networks , and what if the agency problems encountered mean that principals do not have the power to choose their agents or do not have the expertise to monitor their performance adequately or cannot discipline such agents ? According to ( Shapiro 1987 ), an example of such a scenario would be a person investing in a mutual fund managed by individuals they have not chosen , whose activities they cannot effectively monitor and whom they can not directly discipline . Another example could be the relationship between citizens ( including corporate citizens ) and political actors or government officials in weak governance zones where leaders do not directly emerge from the people but are the imposed choice of powerful interests . ( Shapiro 1987 ) describes this as a scenario exhibiting the need for a quantity called “ impersonal trust ”.
A New Mechanism Is Needed
Therefore , a credible mechanism of control needs to be found that can ensure conformance ( to gain a legitimate licence to operate ) and
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strengthen monitoring and enforcement ( by legitimate external authority ) while preserving the commitment to ( ethical ) values and beliefs that should guide the operations of businesses operating in zones of weak governance . In weak governance zones , we are reminded that individuals , corporate bodies inclusive , are reluctant to get involved publicly in collective action for ( lack of trust or ) fear of being targeted for retribution by powerful , unscrupulous officials or because of apathy in the belief that such effort will be futile . There must be a way to aggregate their opinions , even covertly expressed , and focus this collective will on their behalf on a specific common problem . Collective action between an Ombudsman , government , business , and civil society based on shared values and beliefs , utilising a public feedback mechanism and an accountability mechanism , might provide the needed leverage . Would the power be enough to improve regulatory outcomes ? I would define any mechanism or arrangement that can amplify the aspirations and intentions of a collective of corporate bodies , citizens or other groups in this manner as a Civitas Mechanism of Control .
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary , civitas is a body of people constituting a politically organised community . A business association , for example , could qualify as a civitas ; the same goes for any politically organised special interest or other advocacy groups of citizens ( which could also include corporate citizens ) and civil society ( NGO ) type organisations . How does it work ? Who should operate the mechanism ? Where should the locus of control be ?
MACN / CBI Application Of The Civitas Mechanism Of Control MACN was established in 2011 as an industry-led collective action initiative to stamp out corruption in the maritime industry and promote
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inclusive trade . With over 170 companies ( www . macn . dk ) across the maritime sector , making up over 50 % of the global tonnage , MACN has become one of the outstanding examples of an industry-led collective action network taking tangible steps to eliminate corruption across the supply chain . By working in partnership with the industry , governments , and civil society , MACN has successfully addressed corruption risks through country-specific actions in locations as diverse as Nigeria , Indonesia , Egypt , India , Ukraine , and Argentina . MACN ’ s initiatives have been welcomed by stakeholders and have resulted in measurable outcomes such as removing trade barriers , strengthening governance frameworks , and substantially reducing corruption risks in maritime trade . MACN is a bonafide Civitas . In 2012 , MACN approached the government of Nigeria through the UNDP for collaboration toward reducing corruption in Nigeria ’ s maritime sector .
CBi , established in 1997 , is a principles-based , certifying , and anti-corruption business coalition in Nigeria which works to get entities to prefer integrity over corruption . CBi promotes ethical business practices , transparency and fair competition in the private and public sectors . In 2016 , CBi was formally named local partner to MACN . Before that , staff from CBi was chosen by UNDP to support corruption risk assessment training for civil society and government risk assessors and then to deliver professional ethics training to 1,000 officials in the ports and terminals . CBi has helped build an Integrity Alliance ( a Civitas ) of over 120 stakeholders in the Nigerian maritime sector .
On the 27th of June , 2022 , the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network ( MACN ) and the Convention on Business Integrity ( CBi ) were awarded the first-ever “ Outstanding Achievement in Collective Action ” award by the Basel Institute on Governance , Switzerland ( the B20 Collective Action Hub on the
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