Moderately effective: international auditors evaluate NABU’s work
7 May 11:14
26 recommendations for the NABU to improve the bureau’s activities and 7 issues to be considered by the Verkhovna Rada and other institutions for the same purpose are reflected in the report of international independent experts who have audited the work of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine for the first time. This is reported on the Government portal, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs.
The Law of Ukraine “On NABU” obliges the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine to undergo an annual external independent assessment (audit) of its performance. This assessment was the first of its kind since the NABU was established in 2015.
What were the conclusions of the international commission?
The experts stated that, in general, the NABU has achieved its overall expected results. As an example, it was mentioned that in the period from 2023 to 2024, an increase in the number of criminal proceedings, indictments and verdicts was reported.
At the same time, as of today, the NABU has not conducted any effective criminal proceedings regarding information leaks by its own employees during the pre-trial investigation, which poses a significant reputational threat to the Bureau.
It was also noted that in some cases, the organizational structure of the NABU lacks clear lines of authority, proper delegation of powers, or an ambiguous division of labor.
The overall conclusion of the independent external evaluation (audit) of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau’s performance is that the NABU’s performance was moderately effective during the evaluation period.
What did the independent auditors recommend?
The International Commission recommended that the NABU improve monitoring of statistics on proactive detection of corruption offenses and investigative measures; introduce a monitoring component in its whistleblower program, including the collection of confidential feedback from whistleblowers and applicants; review procedures for protecting the identity of internal applicants and whistleblowers, strengthen the protection of employees’ mobile devices, etc.
The NABU was also recommended to develop a strategic plan with measurable performance indicators.
In total, the Commission made 26 recommendations to the NABU on various aspects of its work.
What other institutions are recommended to do
To improve NABU’s effectiveness, the Commission suggests, among other things, considering urgent measures to introduce autonomous wiretapping capabilities for NABU.
To ensure NABU’s access to timely and impartial forensic expertise, it is recommended to consider establishing additional legal safeguards and safeguards to ensure the availability and impartiality of independent forensic services.
In order to provide NABU and other law enforcement agencies with sufficient time to conduct pre-trial investigations and remove other obstacles in the fight against high-level corruption, the experts recommended returning to the consideration of repealing the Lozovyi amendments, which create obstacles to effective pre-trial investigations.
They also suggested changing the frequency of the external evaluation and conducting it every two years instead of every year.
Who evaluated the NABU’s work
According to the Law on NABU, the external independent assessment was to be conducted by a Commission consisting of three international anti-corruption experts.
on September 3, 2024, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine appointed the members of the Commission – Martin Arpo, Robert A. Westbrooks, and Hermione Cronje. This was done on the basis of proposals from international and foreign organizations that have recently provided Ukraine with international technical assistance in the field of preventing and combating corruption.
How experts evaluated the NABU’s work
The Commission approved the criteria and methodology on November 18, 2024. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine published the relevant document on its website. It can be found here.
The Commission chose criteria based on international anti-corruption standards and principles. The methodology was also based on international standards and best practices in public audit and evaluation.
The NABU performance assessment covered 38 individual criteria grouped into 5 dimensions for the period from March 2023 to November 2024. To reach its conclusion, the Commission identified and collected evidence in various ways, including surveys, interviews, research of case files, documents, etc.
