Monaco takes further steps in preventing corruption

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Following the publication of Sovereign Order no. 9.931 in the Official Journal on 15 June 2023, the Principality of Monaco is strengthening its anti-corruption measures and demonstrating its commitment to developing its regulations in compliance with international standards.

The purpose of this legislation is to establish a specific legal regime for the ethical conduct of members of the government, thereby enabling the Principality to comply with the requirements of The Group of States against Corruption (GRECO)* for the prevention of corruption and the promotion of integrity within central governments and law enforcement authorities.

Sovereign Order 9.931 states that members of the Government must carry out their duties with loyalty, dignity, integrity, selflessness, impartiality, objectivity, and professional discretion. There are also specific measures concerning:

-          Informing and raising awareness among government members of the principles and rules of ethics, professional conduct, and compliance with their duties.

-          Establishing declarations of assets and interests.

-          Formalising a disqualification procedure and an abstention procedure.

-          Reinforcing the policy of monitoring and tracking gifts.

-          The creation of an Ethics Committee and the appointment of a compliance officer.

-          The introduction of a specific procedure to prevent "pantouflage” when a member of Government plans to pursue a position in the private sector after leaving office.

Other legislation is in the pipeline, with a particular focus on extending this specific system to other senior executive positions.

In 2007, Monaco acceded to the Council of Europe's Criminal Law Convention on Corruption and to the partial agreement establishing GRECO. Since 2008, Monaco has engaged in an evaluation procedure comprising several evaluation rounds defined by GRECO based on the twenty guiding principles of the convention. Many legislative and regulatory advances have been made in the fight against corruption since 2008.

The GRECO evaluation team's next visit to Monaco for the fifth evaluation round is scheduled for 20 to 24 November 2023.

*Created in 1999 by the Council of Europe to monitor member states' compliance with the organisation's anti-corruption standards, GRECO aims to improve its members' ability to fight corruption by ensuring, through a dynamic process of mutual evaluation and pressure, that they comply with the Council of Europe's anti-corruption standards. It contributes to identifying shortcomings in national anti-corruption policies and as a result encourages States to carry out the necessary legislative, institutional and practical reforms. GRECO is also a forum for sharing best practices in preventing and detecting corruption.