Our Policies
ICARS is committed to the highest possible standards of ethics, moral and legal business conduct and has therefore adopted a number of policies as outlined below.
Any concerns about actual or suspected misconduct can be reported to ethics@icars-global.org or via the ICARS Whistleblowing system (including with the option to report anonymously). The reporting system provides a channel for reporting on any issues covered by the ICARS whistleblowing policy.
Anti-bribery, fraud and corruption policy
The purpose of this policy is to safeguard the reputation and financial viability of ICARS through improved management of bribery, fraud and corruption risk.
Code of ethics & professional conduct
The purpose of this Code is to strengthen the ethical foundation of ICARS and thereby to ensure a robust safeguarding environment.
Conflict of interest policy
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that any actual or potential conflict of interest or the appearance thereof is (a) detected, and (b) avoided or appropriately managed, and thus to protect the integrity of the decision-making process of, and of research projects (co-)funded by, ICARS.
Data protection policy
The purpose of this policy is to (1) protect the personal data of those various stakeholders connected to ICARS, and (2) set out the relevant legislation on data protection and to describe the steps ICARS is taking to ensure that it complies with it.
Intellectual assets and open access to research products policy
The purpose of this policy is to maximize impact and global access to ICARS (co-) funded projects and activities, while making sure that knowledge and information is shared in a way that maximizes their benefit to LMICs, and respects local ownership in project development and implementation (including with respect to data).
Organisational risk management policy
The purpose of organisation-wide risk management is to enable ICARS to be better prepared for the potential realisation of organisational risks, following an analysis of the likelihood and impact and management of those risks.
Project risk management policy
The purpose of this policy is to outline the steps for the management of risks faced by ICARS projects and the process whereby ICARS reviews cumulative risk across projects.
Whistleblowing policy
The purpose of this policy is to outline the ICARS whistleblowing procedure to demonstrate to ICARS staff and partners (1) that a whistleblowers concern raised in good faith will always be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly, (2) how confidentiality is protected in case of whistleblowing and (3) that there will be no retaliation for the whistleblower.