The 2025 World Anti-Corruption Conference (WACC) took place in Oxford for the first time on Friday 24th October. Hosted at Rhodes House, the annual event brought together academics, policymakers, business and civil leaders, and members of Oxford University to formulate actionable proposals to combat corruption.
WACC, which is organised by the International Strategy Institute (ISI), began in 2019 as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Forum. After changing its name to the World Anti-Corruption Conference in 2023, the event expanded its scope to tackle corruption globally. This year marks the first year WACC will be held at a venue outside of South East Asia.
This year’s event, which is titled ‘United for Integrity: Innovation, Collaboration, and Accountability in the Fight Against Corruption’, featured topic discussions on subjects such as corporate integrity, financial innovation and the empowerment of future generations.
During the conference, there were speeches made by CY Cheah (Chairman of the ISI) and Dato’ Jamil, Director General of the National Anti-Financial Crime Centre in Malaysia, as well as multiple networking sessions.
Before the event, Michał Pietrzak, a third-year student and former President of the Oxford Diplomatic Society, who attended the conference, and told Cherwell: “Although anti-corruption has never been my area of interest, it is an incredibly important aspect of any political endeavour, diplomatic or otherwise, and thus pertinent to all related fields. The conference is a great opportunity for me to learn more about efforts seeking to mitigate corruption through regulation and enforcement, and the monitoring processes used to determine their effectiveness.”
Pietrzak added that he is “particularly intrigued by the event’s inclusion of education and youth empowerment”, as well as the various networking opportunities.
Through the 2025 conference, WACC aims to continue its mission of raising awareness of anti-corruption and promoting productive dialogue and “uniting global leaders to advance integrity, transparency, and accountability across sectors and borders.”
 took place in Oxford for the first time on Friday 24th October. Hosted at Rhodes House, the annual event brought together academics, policymakers, business and civil leaders, and members of Oxford University to formulate actionable proposals to combat corruption.){kind=link}