“Nizahat”: Joint Gulf efforts serve as the cornerstone for consolidating integrity and strengthening transparency

Nada Abu Nasr

The Public Authority for Combating Corruption in the State of Kuwait, known as “Nizahat,” held a specialized regional virtual workshop titled “Combating Corruption and Identifying the Beneficial Owner.” The event was attended by relevant anti-corruption authorities and ministries of trade and industry from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, marking the first initiative of its kind in the Gulf region in this vital field.

The workshop was convened to complement Nizahat’s ongoing efforts in this area. The Authority prepared the GCC Guideline titled “Practices and Measures for Identifying the Beneficial Owner in GCC Member States,” which was approved by the Ministerial Committee on Combating Corruption of the GCC at its eleventh meeting held in Kuwait in October 2025, under Kuwait’s presidency of the committee’s work.

At the outset of the workshop, Dr. Majid Al-Daihani, Deputy Chairman of the Public Authority for Combating Corruption, delivered a welcoming address to the delegations of member states. He commended the role played by the Kingdom of Bahrain in its presidency of the Ministerial Committee on Combating Corruption and expressed the Authority’s deep gratitude to the GCC Secretariat General and the participating sister agencies for their gracious cooperation.

He clarified that the holding of this workshop embodies Kuwait’s conviction that joint GCC efforts constitute the most solid foundation for consolidating integrity and strengthening transparency. In this context, he outlined the key measures undertaken by the Public Authority for Combating Corruption regarding the identification of beneficial owners, foremost among which was the Authority’s leadership in preparing the GCC Guideline and its subsequent approval by the Ministerial Committee. He emphasized that the workshop aims to review national experiences and identify common ground among GCC states to formulate practical recommendations that contribute to developing beneficial ownership frameworks at the GCC level.

He added that beneficial ownership transparency has become a necessary international requirement in accordance with decisions of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). It serves as the first line of defense against hiding illicit proceeds behind complex corporate structures, conflicts of interest in government contracts, and cross-border money laundering.

Throughout the workshop sessions, representatives from GCC countries presented their national experiences and practices in identifying beneficial owners, both in terms of legislative frameworks and technical mechanisms for verifying, ensuring the accuracy of, and periodically updating beneficial ownership data.

Regarding the Kuwaiti experience, Abdullah Al-Hariz, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, emphasized in his intervention that efforts by countries to enhance beneficial ownership transparency have proven their practical effectiveness. The disclosure rate among registered Kuwaiti companies reached approximately 99%, a clear indication of the success of the regulatory and supervisory system adopted under Ministerial Decision No. (4) of 2023 and its amendments.

The workshop resulted in the adoption of a set of joint recommendations, including the development of legislative and supervisory frameworks for beneficial ownership disclosure, with the imposition of deterrent penalties for violations; the integration of electronic records and data exchange among relevant authorities; the utilization of artificial intelligence to uncover complex ownership chains; and the enhancement of awareness, capacity building, and the exchange of expertise between GCC states and relevant international organizations.