OECD commends Greece on reforms against corruption

Athens: The OECD has noted Greece’s adjustment into taking measures against corruption and in fighting it in international business transactions, in a report after an assessment carried out in the country.

In particular, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development report mentions, among other things, that Greece has implemented 38 of the 49 recommendations made by the organization – and in a short time – while underlining that the implementation of these anti-corruption measures is important.

Among the measures taken and highlighted in the report are:

• The overall upgrading of the liability of legal entities for bribery offences.
• Strengthening the role of the financial prosecutor, by expanding his authority to investigate and prosecute corruption offences.
• The further expansion of the scope of the law for the protection of public interest witnesses (whistleblowers protection).
• The strengthening of the code of ethics for judges and prosecutors in civil and criminal justice, as well as the code of ethics for members of the government, emphasizing the true independence of the judiciary from the executive.

The report also states that further progress is expected through the effective implementation of the measures and acknowledges that appropriate actions are already being taken in this direction.

The Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Development, as well as the National Transparency Authority, under the coordination of the Presidency of the Government, participated in the effort that led to this positive result.

From the OECD headquarters in Paris the effort was coordinated by the ambassador of Greece to the OECD, Professor Giorgos Pagoulatos, in collaboration with the head of the national delegation in the working group, Professor Maria Gavouneli. Judges and civil servants from South Korea and Lithuania participated in the country’s panel of assessors, while the final decision was taken by the plenary of the 46 states parties to the convention.