Company standards for the use of agents are rising.  It is becoming normal for due diligence to be done on agents.  Companies have in house teams who specialise in such due diligence, and there are services now available, such as Trace International, to do the diligence on behalf of companies.

Nevertheless, many companies still see them as a source of competitive advantage, often on the basis of their confidential use.  Stories abound of their continuing influence on arms purchases.  In many countries and regions of the world the agents and intermediaries are better established then the administration or the government, and their influence persists from one government to another. 

Transparency International would like to see transparency in the use of agents.  We support the due diligence processes being used by companies, such as verification of trading nature, trading history, relationships in the country, contract standards, contract terms.

Transparency International's defence project also believe that standards should be raised, for example:

• Disclosure of the use of all agents to the purchasing government and to national oversight organisations
• Disclosure of the contract and reward basis to the purchasing government and to national oversight organisations
• Annual due diligence of the agents being used and reporting on them to the firm’s audit committee

In this clip, John Githongo talks about the importance of fighting corruption in the defence sector, including the need to publish the identities of the leading middlemen involved in facilitating arms deals in Africa.