On 28-29 July, the Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine hosted an online seminar under the special short-term programme “Preventing Corruption”, organised for staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Ukraine’s foreign diplomatic missions jointly with the National Agency on Corruption Prevention.

The participants were welcomed by Serhii Hupiak, Deputy Head of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention.

Over the course of two days, representatives of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention familiarised the participants with the key provisions of anti-corruption legislation and practical approaches to applying them in their professional activities. The first day focused on the general principles of corruption prevention within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, financial control and electronic asset declarations, as well as approaches to managing corruption risks. The sessions were delivered by Iryna Tymchenko, Head of the Department for Awareness-Raising and Training Programmes at the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, and Tetiana Zabuchynska, a representative of the same department.

The second day of the seminar covered the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, other anti-corruption restrictions and prohibitions, OECD anti-corruption standards, procedures for reporting possible corruption-related offences, and legal liability for corruption and corruption-related violations. The participants also explored how international anti-corruption standards can be applied in the work of the diplomatic service.

Oleksandr Melnychenko, Law Enforcement Analyst at the OECD Anti-Corruption Division, spoke about OECD anti-corruption standards and their application in the work of the diplomatic service. Oleksandr Skob, Deputy Head of the Whistleblowing Development Unit of the Department for the Implementation of Anti-Corruption Policy in the Economic and Law Enforcement Sectors at the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, addressed the issues of reporting corruption and protecting whistleblowers.

The seminar contributed to strengthening the legal awareness of staff members of Ukraine’s foreign diplomatic missions, developing their ability to identify potential corruption risks in a timely manner, and reducing violations in the performance of their official duties.