Our national project partner in Kyrgyz Republic, The Anti-Corruption Business Council under the President of the Kyrgyz Republic (hereinafter referred to as the Council) headed by Nuruipa Mukanova, Secretary General, visited Washington, D.C. and New York from August 10 to August 19 to exchange experiences, build capacity of staff and members of the Council, as well as employees of the government agencies, and to get information from the first-hand about the mechanisms of implementation of international standards for prevention and combating of corruption.
The Council staff met with the representatives of the World Bank headquarters (Managers of the Global Governance Practice), the World Justice Project (Executive Director and experts), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (Deputy Representative), the US State Department for Global Anti-Corruption, the representatives of the Kyrgyz Republic to the UN in New York, Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic in Washington, Counselor to the Kyrgyz Republic Executive Director in IMF and WB.
At the meeting with the World Bank, the methodology for assessing the corruption control indicator and improvement of this indicator in the Kyrgyz Republic was discussed. The World Bank briefed the activities the Bank assists to the neighboring Asian countries of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in improving indicators to reduce corruption in the region.
At the meeting with UNODC, we discussed the implementation of the UN Convention in different countries, the activities of UNODC in the region, and the Grace project, which is implemented in Central Asian countries with the support of the UN and coordinated by the UNODC office in Astana. We also discussed the policy actions on corruption prevention for 2023-2025 in Kyrgyzstan. The UN representative informed about the importance of the International Anti-Corruption Day, which is held annually with the support of the UN and the anticipated conference of the States Parties against Corruption in Atlanta in December 2023.
At the meeting with the Executive Director of the World Justice Project, the project experts presented the rule of law index, which includes nine (9) criteria, including such criteria as openness, transparency, and accountability of the state bodies. The index on the rule of law is conducted annually, and the report for 2023 will be presented in November-December. The executive director also noted that with the support of the World Justice Project, the Republic of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan improved their positions on the rule of law index, and expressed readiness to assist in building the capacity of the Council staff under the President and authorized corruption prevention officers of the government agencies to manage and improve the rule of law index.
At the meeting with the US State Department for Global Anti-Corruption, while discussing the law "On Amnesty of Assets of Individuals," it was highlighted that the law is aimed at the return of assets withdrawn from the country and exit from the shadow economy, as well as guarantees provided by the state. It should be taken into account that many citizens, including civil servants and entrepreneurs, register their property with their relatives and friends, so in reality, it is difficult to identify real beneficial owners. The state provides an opportunity to bring assets out of the shadows, invest them back into the economy, and work with a clean record. It was also noted that the law "On Amnesty of Assets of Individuals" is, in turn, aimed at reducing corruption supply and demand, the elimination of economic fundamental causes of corruption.
