The evaluation report of Greece by the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), in the framework of the 5th evaluation cycle on the effectiveness of measures to prevent corruption and promote integrity in central government and law enforcement agencies, has been published.
The text of the report notes the improved picture that Greece has shown in the field of anti-corruption in recent years and recognises the value of the legislative initiatives taken in the fields of internal control (Law 4795/2021), regulation of influence activities (Law 4829/2021) and the strengthening of the accountability and integrity framework for members of the government and political advisors (Law 4622/2019). The importance of digital transformation as a means to promote transparency and public accountability is also highlighted
The report praises the establishment and the work carried out by the National Transparency Authority (NTA) as the body that coordinates the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategic Plan (NACAP), contributing with its work to the strengthening of integrity mechanisms in public life. In addition, reference is made to the development of personalised codes of conduct for public administration bodies and to the new institution of Integrity Advisors introduced by Law 4795/2021.
Finally, the report identifies areas for further improvement, such as the completion of the national regulatory framework for the protection of whistleblowers of corruption. Our country has proceeded at a faster pace than the majority of EU member states with regard to the transposition of Directive 2019/1937 into the national legal order, with the relevant draft law already being processed by the relevant parliamentary bodies.
The progress in implementing the recommendations of the report will be assessed in 2023 in the context of GRECO's monitoring mechanism with the report's recommendations.
The NTA actively participated in the evaluation process by recording national anti-corruption actions in the relevant questionnaire and collecting the necessary documentation. Furthermore, during the on-site visit of the team of evaluators, the Authority had the opportunity to present in detail the targeting of its interventions and to reaffirm its commitment to the values and high performance criteria set by GRECO of the Council of Europe.