OSCE Office opens anti-corruption Centre in Azerbaijan

BAKU, 16 March 2007 - Fighting corruption and increasing transparency in local government are the main objectives of an Anti-corruption Legal Advocacy Centre (ALAC) that opened in the north-western Azerbaijani city of Sheki today.

The event is part of a joint programme of the OSCE Office in Baku and the NGONGO
non-governmental organization Transparency Azerbaijan, and follows the opening of four other anti-corruption centres in Baku, Ganja, Guba and Lenkaran.

"Corruption prevents the efficient functioning of a market economy and imposes an unfair economic burden on the most vulnerable groups of society," said Ambassador Jose-Luis Herrero, the Head of the OSCE Office.

"This centre will be instrumental in dealing with cases at the local level and in empowering ordinary people with tools to achieve success in the sustained fight against corruption."

A toll-free hotline has been established in the Centre to help victims report corruption cases and receive legal advice on their rights. The ALAC will also offer professional legal support to citizens to help them file and pursue complaints, provide support to authorities to strengthen their capacity to process complaints, and support the public administration system in enforcing the recently adopted anti-corruption legislation.

The OSCE Office in Baku has been active in fighting corruption since its opening in 2000.
It supports Azerbaijan's commitments to combat corruption through various projects such as an assessment of anti-corruption legislation, strengthening anti-corruption institutions and awareness raising campaigns. The Office is also helping the Government and civil society implement the State Programme on Combating Corruption, adopted in January 2005.