Chisinau, October 24-25, 2023 – The 41st Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) Steering Group meeting was held in Chisinau, Moldova, on October 24 and 25. The meeting was hosted by the National Anticorruption Center of Moldova.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Laura Stefan, RAI Chairperson greeted all participants and thanked the National Anticorruption Center of Moldova for hosting the 41^st RAI Steering Group Meeting. She referred to the International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations that was signed on October 23 by the Ministry of Justice of Moldova as an excellent tool and opportunity for RAI member countries to improve their capacities and efficiency as regard asset declarations which will enable better cooperation on national and regional level.

In his welcoming speech, the deputy director of CNA, Mr. Vadim Cojocaru, mentioned the importance of the meeting from the perspective of RAI’s efforts in the fight against corruption and the support provided to anti-corruption institutions in strengthening the regulatory framework and tools to counter this phenomenon.

Mr. Cojocaru also noted that “the support offered by RAI is essential in various fields and especially in terms of regional cooperation in the segment of asset declaration, anti-corruption legislative expertise, corruption risk assessment, the field of whistleblowing, asset recovery and other particularly important aspects. In this context, he highlighted the impact of the EU-funded Project “Breaking the Silence: Enhancing the Whistleblower Policies and Culture in the Western Balkans and the Republic of Moldova”, which was the starting point for the revision of the national legislation on the protection of whistleblowers. Mr. Cojocaru pointed out that, on June 22, 2023, the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova adopted in its final reading the new Law on whistleblowers, which transposes the EU Directive on the protection of persons who report violations of Union law”.

Following the opening remarks and Agenda adoption, the meeting participants proceeded with exchange of views with Mr. Lilian Chisca, President of National Integrity Authority of Moldova.

The Steering Group Meeting Agenda included several issues related to the review of main  activities of the current year and the presentation of plans for 2024. During the first day, the participants discussed the most important progress and achievements, as well as the budget and and financial outlook for 2024. Day two was dedicated to new RAI Chairperson election procedure.

The 41st Steering Group meeting was attended by all member country representatives (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania and Serbia), as well as the Ukraine in the capacity of observer.

More information:

Agenda

Summary of discussions and conclusions

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