GRECO looks forward to further engagement with Kazakhstan

In September this year the Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) has published the first report on Kazakhstan assessing progress made in implementing the recommendations issued to the country in the Joint First and Second Round Evaluation Report (2022).

GRECO President Marin MRCELA gives an exclusive comment to Kazinform, where he talks more about cooperation of GRECO with Kazakhstan.

"Kazakhstan is the newest member of GRECO and one of the two non-member states of the Council of Europe, along with the United States. The authorities have cooperated well with GRECO in the evaluation process leading to the adoption of this report, and the evaluation team has also received measurable input from the media and civil society.

The report has identified a number of issues that need to be addressed. One is the independence of the judiciary. Another is the need to strengthen and have an independent civil society. GRECO welcomed the fact that Kazakhstan, after the adoption of the report, very promptly authorised its publication, including as regards the compliance report, which was recently published on 6 September 2024. This will allow the public and practitioners in the field to scrutinise the findings and support the work at national level to implement effective reforms.

The most recent report assesses to what extent Kazakhstan has implemented the recommendations of GRECO. As you can see from it, while only a relatively small proportion of recommendations were considered as implemented fully, the authorities have already initiated steps in many areas to address the shortcomings. These steps will continue being evaluated by GRECO in its compliance procedure.

I am positive that Kazakhstan’s cooperation with GRECO, and more generally with the Council of Europe to prevent and fight corruption can only be beneficial.

Preventing and detecting corruption at country level is critical, but such efforts must be complemented by efforts to address the transnational dimensions. The great challenges we face in respect of corruption, we can only meet them if we understand the risks, the trends, how to best address those and by cooperating with others to achieve this goal.

GRECO is based on a model of mutual evaluation and peer pressure, rather than a model of sanctions. Our model ensures the promotion of anti-corruption reforms in line with our common standards, and improves the capacity of its member states to prevent and fight corruption. Such cooperation – which gives Kazakhstan access to collective expertise and peer pressure - is important and useful, it is an investment in building durable barriers against corruption.

I should also mention that Kazakhstan is currently being assessed under the Third Evaluation Round. The two themes covered are incriminations of corruption offences and transparency of party funding, with reference to relevant Council of Europe legal instruments. GRECO looks forward to further engagement with the Kazakhstani authorities in this new evaluation round," he said.