Visual: Transparency International LATVIA
Published: 01.02.2023.
Jēkabs Straume, Director of the KNAB: "Over the past years Latvia has implemented the recommendations made by international organisations, adopted the Law on Transparency of Representation of Interests and made numerous improvements to the existing regulatory framework, as well as implemented other actions to reduce and exclude the presence of corruption.
Latvia still has some homework to do, which can not only improve its position in the CPI, but also reduce people's tolerance of corruption. One of these homework assignments is to find ways to reduce the length of litigation. To be fully effective, the public must also be aware of its role in the fight against corruption and take an active part in it by not remaining indifferent and reporting possible crimes."
In KNAB's view, the time lag between the publication of the results and the conduct of the CPI studies should be taken into account in the analysis of both the Latvian and the overall CPI country indicators. Some of the studies on which the CPI indicator is based were carried out at a time when the world was shaken by a global pandemic. It has not only changed people's daily lives, but has also significantly increased uncertainty and pessimism among different groups of people and sectors of the economy.
In recent years, KNAB and other responsible institutions have successfully implemented measures to implement the recommendations of international organisations in the area of preventing and combating corruption. In mid-January 2023, the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) published its Fifth Evaluation Report, indicating that Latvia had fully or partially implemented all 17 recommendations made by the Group. Latvia has thus become the second country to successfully complete the GRECO Fifth Evaluation Round.
KNAB and Latvia's contribution to anti-corruption has also been recognised by Transparency International. Last autumn, the organisation acknowledged that Latvia was the only EU Member State to have improved its performance in combating bribery of foreign public officials.
According to KNAB, Latvia should take into account the recommendations made by international organisations and take active measures to implement them. Implementation of the recommendations will improve anti-corruption mechanisms and international best practice, increasing political integrity and preventing risks of waste of public resources. Support mechanisms offered by international organisations also play an important role. In mid-January 2023, the European Commission and the OECD launched an anti-corruption project in Latvia, one of the objectives of which is to review the adequacy of the regulatory framework for conflict of interest prevention to the current situation.
The results of KNAB's activities show that the number of legal entities whose interests are served by bribery of public officials in Latvia and abroad is increasing every year. This indicates a negative trend and highlights the importance of internal anti-corruption control systems for the integrity of companies and the mitigation of corruption risks. KNAB agrees with the opinion of the Transparency International LATVIA on the need for stakeholders to implement measures to increase business integrity and business awareness of the forms of corruption in the private sector.