The workshop "Challenges in the verification of assets declarations", organised as part of the "Action Against economic crime in Montenegro", provided a venue for discussion of new approaches to the prioritisation in controlling and verifying assets declarations submitted by state officials. The aim of this activity was to support the Montegrin Agency For Prevention of Corruption in improving the quality controls results. For this purpose, a technical paper was prepared and presented by the Action's long-term advisor.

The document provides an assessment of the current methodology in use; analysis of the legal obstacles and provides recommendations for the amendments of the legal framework to allow for a new approch in controlling and veryifying asset declarations. Furthermore the technical paper outlines new risk-based criteria for the selection of officials; methods for data collection and  improvement of the coordination among institutional actors involved in the process.

Taking into account the findings and recommendations of this paper and the joint conclusions from the workshop, a new plan of control of assets declarations will be prepared and adopted by the Agency for Prevention of Corruption by the end of December 2017.

This activity took place as part of the Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Turkey programme. The latter is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.