Representatives of anti-corruption authorities of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan met with their counterparts from nine anti-corruption bodies from Council of Europe member states (Croatia, France, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Malta, and the United Kingdom), in the framework of an exchange visit held in Strasbourg and Paris on 2-5 April 2024. Through presentations and discussions during their visit in the headquarters of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, they became more familiar with the Council of Europe’s system, standards, and instruments in the fight against economic crime and corruption, including Council of Europe’s Criminal and Civil Law conventions and its anti-corruption monitoring body - the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO). The participants of both delegations also had an opportunity to exchange in Paris (France) with representatives of the High Authority for transparency in public life (HATVP) and the French anti-corruption Agency (AFA).

They are now more aware of experiences of others in strategic management of anti-corruption, international cooperation against corruption, integrity in the public sector, management of conflicts of interest and protection of whistleblowers. The visit also helped the participants to establish informal networks among themselves to improve cooperation and coordination in the future.

This activity was organised by the Action on “Promoting Transparency and Action against Economic Crime” in the framework of the Central Asia Rule of Law Programme 2020-2024, a joint initiative co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the latter. The Action is aimed at strengthening capacities to fight and prevent economic crime in five Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan).