Dec182023

Communicating open government. The UJI and the AVAF organize a day for transparency and integrity in local entities

#AVAFTraining

Castelló de la Plana.- December 15, 2023

The Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency (AVAF) co-organized together with the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló (UJI) the conference “Communicating open government: Transparency and integrity in local entities” to discuss the results of the research of the Chair of Public Transparency of the university in matters of transparency and public integrity in Valencian local administrations.

On December 15, the assembly hall of the Faculty of Legal and Economic Sciences hosted the 3-hour day, with 75 people following in person and online, since the day was broadcast on the You Tube Channel of the UJI.

The inauguration was carried out by Andrea Planchadell, deputy secretary general of the Universitat Jaume I and Joan Llinares, director of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency.

The conference aimed at university students, as well as public employees of local entities, associations, provincial councils and the Generalitat Valenciana, had as its central conference the explanation of the integrity system of the local entities of the Valencian Community, whose presentation was developed by the director of the AVAF.

Beatriz Tomás and Marta Oller, directors of the UJI Public Transparency Chair, were in charge of presenting the Chair, as well as the results of the research carried out in 2023 on compliance with transparency in the local entities of the Valencian Community. financed by the Generalitat Valenciana.

The day included the participation of various visions on transparency in public integrity in local entities through the holding of a round table, moderated by Jaime Clemente, visiting professor of Constitutional Law at the Rovira i Virgili University of Tarragona.

In the round table, Izan Puente, graduate of the GAP – UJI degree and junior consultant in public governance, showed how the results of the transparency compliance items had been obtained in the municipalities of the Valencian Community.

For his part, from the AVAF, Anselm Bodoque, head of the Training Service, showed the results obtained by the investigation of the Chair of Public Transparency, in matters of public integrity, and highlighted the low degree of compliance of the local entities of the Valencian Community at the time of the survey (September-October 2023) in regards to the publication of:

  • Approval of an anti-fraud measures plan (PMS)
  • Preparation of a code of ethics or conduct or adherence to the good governance code of the Consell or another entity.
  • Creation of an internal information system (SII) and if it is easily visible on its website,
  • Information about the external information system, which in the case of the CV is the AVAF.
  • Whether the technology used by the city council for the SII allows the anonymity of the informants.
  • Appointment of a natural person or collegiate body as responsible for the system.

Pilar Moreno, AVAF Training technician, in addition to contrasting the survey data with the information that local entities have been providing to the AVAF, presented recommendations for improving the transparency of the integrity system in local entities of the Valencian Community in its exhibition, among which stand out:

  • Inclusion in the Anti-Fraud Measures Plan (PMA) of dissemination actions that give it relevance in the organizational culture.
  • Dissemination of the organization’s ad intra and ad extra anti-fraud measures plan through communication actions and information campaigns among contractors, associations and citizens.
  • Participation of all public employees and elected officials in the preparation of the ethical code.
  • Inclusion in the ethical code of the communication and dissemination plan.
  • Creation of a visible icon on the home page of the institutional website of the local entity that links to the internal and external information system (AVAF) and the applicable regulations, in a maximum of 3 clicks.

Finally, Lidia García, secretary – auditor of the Vilafranca City Council, showed the reality that small and medium-sized municipalities live and the lack of economic and human resources from which they suffer. In his presentation, he detailed the lack of a culture of transparency and the lack of perception of the importance of integrity in administrations, as well as the steps that are progressively being taken to advance the publicity and dissemination of the rights held by citizens. in terms of transparency.

The AVAF, with these initiatives, maintains its collaboration with the public universities of the Valencian Community and the promotion of public debate on transparency, integrity, prevention of corruption and dissemination of the importance of public ethics and the culture of rejection of fraud. in the public sector. Once again, the Agency’s Training Service is grateful for the continued collaboration that is being developed with the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló.

You can access the recording of the day at the following link 

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

*Photographs courtesy of the Jaume I University of Castelló

Dec152023

Only 134 public administrations have submitted to the Registry of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency the Heads of their Internal Information System

València, 15 December  2023.- One of the obligations imposed by the entry into force of Law 2/2023, of 20 February, regulating the protection of people who report regulatory and anti-corruption infringements is for administrations and public bodies to have an internal information system.

The purpose of this internal system is to ensure that possible conduct or irregularities that may be followed up can be reported within the organisations themselves.

The internal information system is made up of three elements: an internal channel (mailbox) where information or complaints can be collected; a procedure that regulates how the information or complaints received will be handled, and finally, the designation of the person who will be responsible for the management and processing of the complaints and information.

Those responsible for internal information systems can be both a natural person and a collegiate body that will be appointed by the governing body or body of the administration, which will have a period of 10 working days from the appointment to communicate it to the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, which is the body designated in the Valencian Community to manage the Register of Heads of Internal Information Systems.

The Law established a deadline of June 13 for public administrations and agencies to notify the Agency of the persons responsible for their Internal Information Systems. In the case of municipalities with less than 10,000 inhabitants, the deadline ended on 1 December. To date, only 134 bodies have complied with this procedure of notifying the Agency of those responsible for internal information systems, a procedure that can be carried out through the Agency’s electronic office.

Among the town councils with more than 10,000 inhabitants, 31 town councils of the 102 required have completed the procedure; while among those with less than 10,000 inhabitants, only 50 of the 440 have reported it to those responsible for the internal information system.

According to the Law, failure to comply with the obligation to have an Internal Information System can constitute a very serious, serious or minor infringement depending on the circumstances and can be sanctioned with fines ranging from 1,000 euros to 1 million euros.

With the aim of helping public administrations in complying with the requirements set out in Law 2/2023, not only with regard to compliance with the implementation of internal information systems, but also with the requirement to have external complaint mailboxes or the design of anti-fraud plans, the Agency has signed 88 collaboration protocols with city councils,  Provincial Councils and Public Enterprises.

In the event that an administration or public entity is interested in signing this type of protocol with the Agency, it can request it through the following email: jurídico@antifraucv.es

Attached is the list of the municipalities that have made the communication of the internal information manager.

Dec132023

#DocuforumAVAF closes the year 2023 at the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló

#AVAFTraining

Castelló de la Plana.- December 12, 2023

The Training Service of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency carried out the last #DocuforumAVAF of the year 2023 in the Audiovisual Communication degree at the Universitat Jaume I of Castellón. The oldest and most agile training activity of the AVAF brought together on this occasion 85 students of the subject “Communication Ethics”, thanks to the collaboration of Professor Ramon A Feenstra.

The first part of the #DocuforumAVAF involves the viewing in the university classroom of the documentary “Corruption: harmful organism” by Pandora Box. With it, students have the opportunity to reflect on the reality of fraud and corruption in public administration and ask their doubts and questions online to the AVAF.

In a second part, the Agency staff explains the creation, functions and objectives of the AVAF and debates with the students about the importance of controls and the participation of civil society.

On this occasion, in addition, the students showed a special interest in the active role that citizens and the media can play in the fight against corruption. They also insisted on the need for ethical principles, control systems and the problem of discrediting the media and how this can affect the fight against fraud.

Anselm Bodoque, head of the AVAF Training Service, moderated the debate on reinforcing ethics and public integrity, as well as the importance of prevention, awareness and citizen organization, and explained the functions of analysis and investigation and protection of informants carried out by the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency.

The AVAF maintains its proposal for public debates with university students, in their training process to perform professional roles that contribute to civil society in the future. For this reason, training actions that reinforce public ethics and the culture of prevention and fight against all conduct that encourages fraud and corruption are considered of great importance.

Once again, the Agency’s Training Service is grateful for the collaboration that is developed year after year with the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló, in terms of promoting prevention and combating regulatory infractions.

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