Nov32023

The Agency participates in the EPAC/EACN General Assembly in Dublin with the participation of more than 100 anti-corruption institutions from 30 countries

Dublin, 3 November 2023 –  The 22nd Annual Conference and General Assembly of the European Anti-Corruption Partners (EPAC) and the European Anti-Corruption Contact Point Network (EACN) took place in Dublin on 2 and 3 December. Among the highlights of the conference was the adoption of the Dublin Declaration and the election of Linas Pernavas, Director of the Lithuanian Special Investigation Service (STT), as the new Chair of the EPAC/EACN Board, while the other members of the Board were re-elected for a second term.

The EPAC/EACN conference, held for the first time in Ireland, was organised by the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, the Police Authority, the Garda Inspectorate and the Irish Department of Justice and was attended by more than 200 representatives from more than 100 institutions from 30 different countries and jurisdictions.

Members of the European Commission, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (EUROPOL), the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and national anti-corruption institutions shared their knowledge and experience in different areas of anti-corruption.

This year’s Conference focused on four main themes: whistleblowing, gender-based violence committed by state actors, safeguarding the EU’s financial interests, and how to address new challenges arising in corruption investigations.

The conference also included the presentation of the EPAC/EACN award for the most innovative anti-corruption initiative, which was awarded this year to the Polish Central Anti-Corruption Office for its ‘ABC Integrity’ project.

 

At the general assembly, the following members of the EPAC/EACN Board of Directors were elected for a period of 2 years, consisting of:

Chairman: Linas PERNAVAS, Director of the Special Investigation Service (STT), Lithuania

Vice-President (Anti-Corruption Area): Ernst SCHMID, Head of Department, Federal Anti-Corruption Office (BAK), Austria

Deputy Vice-President (Anti-Corruption Area): Traian Mihăiţă BÂRLICI, Head of the Prevention Directorate, Directorate-General Anti-Corruption (DGA), Romania

Vice-President (Police Supervision Area): Lucile ROLLAND, Deputy Head of the General Inspectorate of the French National Police (IGPN), France

Deputy Vice-President (Police Oversight): Hugh HUME, Commissioner of the Garda Ombudsman Irish Síochána (GSOC), Ireland

In addition, the General Assembly adopted the Dublin Declaration as the outcome document of the conference. This Statement will be widely disseminated by EPAC/EACN members in their respective countries and submitted to the relevant EU institutions and bodies, the Council of Europe’s GRECO, the OECD’s WGB and the UNODC.

The General Assembly also approved five new members as part of the two networks, bringing to 109 the total number of police oversight and anti-corruption bodies from 38 European countries that are members of EPAC and/or EACN. The new members are the Georgia Anti-Corruption Bureau; the Georgian Special Investigation Service; the Hungarian Integrity Authority; the Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office of Spain and the Asset Management and Recovery Agency of Ukraine

Click here to access the Dublin Declaration.

Nov22023

The Valencian Association of Local Administration Personnel Technicians (AVTPAL) and the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency sign a collaboration agreement

València, November 2, 2023.-  The president of the Valencian Association of Local Administration Personnel Technicians (AVTPAL), Trinidad Martínez, and the director of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, Joan Llinares, have signed a collaboration agreement between both institutions to implement different actions.

One of the highlights of the agreement is that AVTPAL establishes the Agency’s complaints mailbox as its external whistleblowing channel, for which it will put it in a visible place on its website and in other media and channels.

Likewise, AVTPAL will launch its internal whistleblowing channel and will appoint the person responsible for the Internal Information System, communicating this appointment within 10 days so that it can be included in the Registry of Internal Managers.

The obligation to designate a person responsible for the Internal System and its communication to the Agency is set out in Law 2/2023 on the protection of whistleblowers of corruption and the deadline expired on 13 June, except for those municipalities with fewer than 10,000 habitats, whose deadline ends on 1 December. At the moment, the majority of administrations have either not designated the person responsible for the system or have not notified the Agency.

Another of the points included in the agreement is that training actions will be carried out aimed at people who work in the human resources and people management departments of the local administrations of the Valencian Community, which will help to promote ethics and public integrity in our administrations.

In the area of prevention, the Agency will assist AVTPAL in the implementation of an integrity plan, the preparation of risk catalogues and advice on the preparation of codes of ethics.

Nov22023

The Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency collaborates with the Castellón Provincial Council in the training of future people responsible for the internal information system

#AVAFTraining

Castelló de la Plana.- October 31, 2023.

The management of the internal information system was the central axis of the training given by the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, on October 24 and 31, 2023 at the Castellón Provincial Council.

The staff at the service of the local entities of the province of Castellón with less than 20,000 inhabitants, mostly qualified nationals and technicians of the general administration, were the participants in the sessions held in the assembly hall of the new offices of the Provincial Council. from Castellón in the city of Castelló de la Plana.

The issues of greatest relevance and impact on local entities of Law 2/2023 were discussed throughout the two editions of the day, lasting 4 hours each. The training was given by staff from the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, specialists in the management of information systems and protection of informants.

The impact of Law 2/2023 on the protection of informants in the Valencian Community was analyzed by the lawyer of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, Isabel Climent on October 24. For her part, Teresa Clemente, Deputy Director and Legal Affairs of the AVAF, presented the issue in the session on October 31, 2023.

The internal and external information systems according to Law 2/2023, as well as the obligations and profile of those responsible for the systems, were addressed by Gustavo Segura, director of Analysis and Research of the AVAF throughout the day on Tuesday the 24th. Miguel Furió, head of service in the Analysis and Research Directorate, taught the aforementioned subject on October 31.

Management, operating rules, as well as the organization of internal information channels was the subject that aroused the greatest interest among the almost 60 attendees at the training, many of them future managers of the internal information system in the municipalities where they provide their services as public employees.

The interest in informing about the existence of the external information channel, managed by the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency on the websites of the town councils, as well as the needs in terms of human resources for the management of the internal information system were some of the questions asked by those attending the training session.

If you wish to have specialized training in integrity and prevention of corruption in your public administration, do not hesitate to write to formacion@antifraucv.es