The Public Affairs Section of the US Embassy in Conakry welcomed a cross section of Guinean society to a Digital Video Conference on the issue of corruption. Journalists, civil society, NGOs, police personnel, and Embassy employees listened to Mr. Michael Geertson and Mr. Thomas Cornell from Casals and Associates as they examined ways to identify and combat corruption within the context of the Guinea. Casals and Associates has been working on the issue of corruption in 40 countries around the world for over two decades. Recently they also worked with USAID Guinea in 2007.

To begin, these experts described the political climate in Guinea including looking at the effects of the strikes and the tripartite agreements. When they opened the floor for questions, the audience was ready to jump into action. They requested further contact information on NGOs that could assist with the corruption issue and asked for possible tips for taking first steps. Mr. Geertson and Mr. Cornell for their part encouraged the participants to look for small victories on the local levels first and to look for champion or heroic examples to rally around. The ministry of Financial Control was especially grateful that so many members of his team could be present for this presentation.