Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Today, on 5 July, a meeting of the Senate Committee on Judicial-Legal Issues and Anti-Corruption was held.

It discussed the National report on combating corruption in the Republic of Uzbekistan. The Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency gave a detailed information about the work carried out in the country to combat corruption. In particular, over the past 5 years, more than 80 regulatory legal acts have been adopted in the country aimed at eradicating corruption factors in all areas of state and public construction, including over 10 regulatory legal acts regulating the sphere of combating corruption, as well as the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Combating Corruption". The priority directions of the state policy on combating corruption are determined. The National Anti-Corruption Council of the Republic of Uzbekistan has been established. In 2021, an incentive mechanism was introduced for persons who reported corruption offenses or otherwise contributed to the fight against corruption.

In state and economic organizations of the republican level, as well as in the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, khokimiyats of regions and the city of Tashkent, the activities of internal control structures to combat corruption have been established. A procedure for conducting anti-corruption expertise of legislative acts and their drafts based on the principle of "Legislation free from corruption" has been introduced. 

The practice of direct and gratuitous provision of land by local governments has been abolished, and the practice of selling land only through an auction has been established. Since 2021, a procedure has been introduced for posting information on public procurement carried out by budget customers, including on construction and repair, on their official websites. In 26 ministries and departments, "Road maps" have been developed and sent for implementation to reduce the shadow economy and introduce a "compliance control" system in the fight against corruption. 6 memorandums and 3 programs of cooperation with international organizations and bodies of foreign countries on combating corruption were signed.

The Anti-Corruption Agency anonymously conducted population surveys on the activities of law enforcement agencies in regions with a difficult crime situation in the republic, based on the analysis, the presence of corruption risks in law enforcement agencies was identified and proposals were developed aimed at eliminating them. 

During the discussions, the senators noted that, despite the reforms carried out in this area, cases of corruption in society have not decreased. So, in 2021, financial mistakes and shortcomings were made when spending budget funds in the amount of 1 trillion 72.1 billion soums. It was noted that in the context of regions, shortcomings fall on the city of Tashkent, Tashkent, Syrdarya, Kashkadarya, Andijan, Surkhandarya and Jizzakh regions and the Republic of Karakalpakstan. 

Financial errors and shortcomings were identified in the activities of a number of ministries, in particular, the ministries of water management, health, public education, preschool education, agriculture, housing and communal services, higher and secondary specialized education, culture, tourism and sports development, as well as an engineering company Services of a single customer and the Committee for Roads. 

In the republic, violations of the requirements of the laws "On Public Procurement" and "On Competition" in 458 tenders in the amount of 141 billion soums were revealed by budget customers in the field of public procurement. It was noted that the number of corruption criminal cases in the republic in 2021 amounted to 3,769 and increased 3 times compared to the previous year. The largest number of corruption crimes falls on the activities of the ministries of health, public education, preschool education, higher and secondary specialized education, organizations of the banking system.

As a result of the discussions, the Committee gave relevant recommendations to the Cabinet of Ministers, the Anti-Corruption Agency, the Ministries of Construction, Health, Higher and Secondary Specialized Education, and the appropriate decision of the Committee was adopted.