The IGEC was set up after the 1st International Conference on Corruption-Related Crime held in Lyon in 1998. It was mandated by the Interpol General Assembly to develop and implement new anti-corruption initiatives to further law enforcement efficiency in the fight against corruption. The IGEC is a multi-disciplinary group representing all of Interpol's regions, and its members come from police forces, anti-corruption agencies, international organisations, judiciary, academia, training establishments and private sector.

Mr Dowie has been a member of the IGEC since 2006 and the IGEC meeting in Malaysia was his last before he retires from the Force later this year. Speaking after the meeting, he commented: "It has been a great honour to represent the Force on this highly respected body. It really shows the high esteem in which the Hong Kong Police is held by the international law enforcement community, with particular regard to the way we have fought and eliminated endemic corruption. I have made some good friends during my time on the IGEC and I hope my contribution, based on my experience in the Force, has assisted the IGEC's global fight against corruption."

Following the meeting, Mr Dowie, along with other experts from the IGEC, attended inauguration of the MACC in Kuala Lumpur. To beef up anti-corruption capability, Malaysia has upgraded the status of its anti-corruption agency to that of a full commission. It has also passed new anti-corruption legislation; set up new oversight bodies, and increased the salaries of MACC investigators. The then Prime Minister of Malaysia, Mr Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, launched the new commission.

Mr Dowie, in his capacity as a member of the IGEC, also gave two presentations at a workshop held at the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Academy. Attending the workshop were representatives from anti-corruption bodies and law enforcement agencies from across Asia.

"My presentations covered the partnership approach we have with the ICAC to fight police corruption and the components of our own integrity management programme," said Mr Dowie. "Many of the workshop participants were from countries riddled with corruption, but it was really heartening to see that they recognised the damage being done to their countries, both socially and economically, by corruption and really wanted to do something about it. They were extremely interested in how the Force has tackled corruption and it was a great opportunity to trumpet our efforts in this area on the international stage."

Chief Inspector Dave Fremaux, from New Territories Internal Investigations Office, attended the workshop as a participant. He noted: "It was interesting to learn about the initiatives being pursued by other law enforcement agencies to combat corruption. Furthermore, it was great to see how serious the Malaysians are about fighting corruption in their own backyard. In fact, many of the new measures being introduced there are based on Hong Kong's experience."

The Interpol Group of Experts on Corruption with Mr Dowie on the far right