Formation of the strategic course of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the field of combating corruption

In the field of national legislation: With the adoption of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On measures to strengthen the fight against crime, strengthening the rule of law and law and order" dated August 9, 1994, the basis of the state policy to combat corruption was laid and as a logical consequence of this, consistent progressive measures against corruption were taken at the state level.
First of all, as part of the fight against corruption, decisions were made to remove bureaucratic obstacles and inspections that hinder the development of entrepreneurship, and other adequate measures were taken.
Thus, Decrees of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan were adopted "On streamlining state control over production, service, financial and credit activities and prohibiting unreasonable inspections" No. 463 of June 17, 1996 and "On improving the system of state control and eliminating artificial obstacles in the development of entrepreneurship" No. 69 of January 7, 1999, as well as the "Program of State Assistance to Small and Medium Enterprises in the Republic of Azerbaijan (1997-2000)", approved by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 610 of June 24, 1997.
Since 2000, the elimination of obstacles to the development of free entrepreneurship and the private sector in the republic, the prevention of interference in any form in their activities has moved to a completely new plane. By the decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On strengthening the fight against corruption in the Republic of Azerbaijan" dated June 8, 2000, a new stage in the fight against corruption began in our country and, as a logical continuation of this strategy, reforms were carried out in the economic, social, financial and banking spheres, in the sphere of justice. , law enforcement and other spheres, the legislative base has been improved. Also, new laws were adopted on privatization, banks, public service, local government, public procurement, Tax, Customs, Criminal, Criminal Procedure, Civil, Civil Procedure, Labor Codes, Code of Administrative Offenses, “II State Program on Poverty Reduction and economic development ”,“ State Program on socio-economic development of regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan ”and other regulatory legal acts.
Along with this, in order to regularly combat corruption and determine the specific tasks of the structures responsible for its implementation, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan approved the "State Program on Combating Corruption (2004-2006)", "National Strategy to Increase Transparency and Combat Corruption" and the Action Plan for 2007-2011 for its implementation.
The "National Strategy for Increasing Transparency and Fighting Corruption", approved by the order of July 28, 2007, uniting the efforts of state bodies and the public in accordance with the political will of the head of state, and the National Action Plan adopted to implement this strategy, created a favorable legal basis to implement preventive measures in order to eliminate the phenomena that contribute to corruption.
The national strategy, which is conceptual in nature and is the logical result of the national strategy for combating corruption, as well as the action plan supplemented to it, were developed based on the experience of the advanced countries of the world and taking into account the economic, social and other processes taking place in our country.
By order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev No. 1938 dated December 27, 2011, the "National Action Program in the field of increasing the effectiveness of the protection of rights and freedoms in the Republic of Azerbaijan" was approved.
Clause 3.2 of the 3rd section of the above-mentioned Program provides for "Increasing the capacity to strengthen, development of national mechanisms for combating corruption, as well as the continuation of institutional reforms in this area", and in clause 3.3 - "Preparation of an action plan for the next years to ensure transparency in the activities of state bodies and the fight against corruption”.
For this purpose, over the past years, the website “www.rusum.az” was created to obtain information on duties and tariffs applied by state bodies, and the website “www.etika.az” was created to support the regulation of relations between representatives of state structures and citizens within the framework of ethical behavior, education and information in this area.
The Republic of Azerbaijan has joined all international initiatives to promote good governance. In 2011, our country joined the Open Government Partnership to contribute to international efforts to improve transparency and improve work to promote open government, exchange international experience in this area.
By the order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated September 5, 2012, the "National Action Plan for the Promotion of Open Government for 2012-2015" was approved.
This Action Plan was adopted in order to ensure the sustainability of measures implemented within the framework of the "National Strategy for Combating Corruption", approved by the Order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 2292 dated July 28, 2007, to improve the regulatory framework and institutional mechanisms in this area, to bring the work of state bodies and bodies of local self-government in accordance with the principles of open government, expanding public participation in the decision-making process and increasing transparency, ensuring the fulfillment of the international obligations of the Republic of Azerbaijan in this area, the implementation of which has now been completed.
With the aim of providing information to the public by state bodies in the field of ensuring information freedom in the country, ensuring the organization of the provision of electronic services on the principle of a “single window”, a single electronic portal www.e-gov.az has been created.
The “National Action Plan for Combating Corruption for 2012-2015” was approved by the Order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated September 5, 2012.
The main goal of the National Action Plan is to ensure a more systematic, large-scale and effective implementation of measures to combat corruption, protect the rights and freedoms of citizens, and improve the social welfare of the population.
In connection with the implementation of clause 5.1 of the "National Action Plan for Combating Corruption for 2012-2015" by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 291 dated October 17, 2014 "Rules for the preparation and maintenance of the official register of real estate", approved by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 564 dated On April 11, 2007, clause 3.5 was added - "The Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan uses electronic data of registers in real time", Decree No. 292 of October 17, 2014 "Regulations on the unified migration information system of the State Migration Service of the Azerbaijan Republic", approved by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 276 of June 4, 2010, supplemented with clause    12-1 -" The Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan uses electronic data of registers in real time".
On September 30, 2013, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev took part in the opening ceremony of a new administrative building of the Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General, built in the style of national architecture and at the international level within the framework of the implementation of the "State Program for the Modernization of the Prosecution Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan" where he met with the team, to whom he gave his recommendations.
By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated July 13, 2012, the State Agency for Citizens Service and Social Innovation under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and its subordinate service centers "ASAN" were established, the main goal of which is to increase transparency and strengthen the fight against corruption.
Until today, more than 7 million people have used the services of ASAN service centers. After the opening of the ASAN center in Barda and the ASAN center No. 5 in Baku in 2015, the number of ASAN centers subordinate to the State Agency reached 9.
By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan No. 650 of October 19, 2015 "On reducing the types of entrepreneurial activities requiring a special permit (license), simplifying the procedures for issuing a special permit (license) and ensuring their transparency", the service "issuing a special permit (licenses) for all types of entrepreneurial activities requiring a special permit (license) (except for cases arising from state security)", after which the number of services provided in ASAN service centers reached 112.

In the international sphere: The Republic of Azerbaijan did not limit itself to combating corruption at the local level, it became a member of a number of international organizations such as the Group of European Union Countries against Corruption (GRECO), the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD) and the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA), ratified the relevant international conventions ...
In order to bring national legislation in line with world standards, on June 1, 2004, the European Union Conventions “On Criminal Liability for Corruption” and “On Civil Liability for Corruption” entered into force in the Republic of Azerbaijan, and on November 1, 2005, the United Nations Convention Nations "Against Corruption".
The reports of most international structures, including GRECO and OECD, together with the Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, positively assessed the measures taken in the Republic of Azerbaijan in the field of combating corruption.
The fight against corruption in the Republic of Azerbaijan is carried out by the Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan on Combating Corruption and the Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, which is a specialized body for criminal prosecution.
Procedures for cancellation of reservations of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Art. 5 (bribery of foreign public officials), art. 6 (bribery of members of foreign state elected bodies), Art. 10 (bribery of members of international parliamentary assemblies) and Art. 12 (use of official position for personal gain) of the European Union Convention "On Criminal Responsibility for Corruption" and accession to the declaration on non-application in the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan of the Additional Protocol of the European Union Convention "On Criminal Responsibility for Corruption" dated May 15, 2003 (demand for bribes national arbitrators, bribery of foreign arbitrators, national and foreign juries) were implemented by the Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General. By the order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated August 30, 2012, the authority to sign the Additional Protocol by a relevant statement on behalf of the Republic of Azerbaijan was transferred to the Prosecutor General, who signed the document on October 8, 2012. Withdrawal of reservations of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Convention was approved by the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated October 01, 2012.
On July 29, 2012, the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan was adopted on joining the Agreement “On the establishment of the International Anti-Corruption Academy as an international organization”.
In order to improve the efficiency of the Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, proposals were prepared on the draft Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan on accession to the Additional Protocol of the European Union Convention "On Criminal Responsibility for Corruption", submitted to the Milli Majlis and approved by the Law of February 01 2013.
As a result of the voting held within the framework of the 15th annual Professional Conference of the European Organization of Partners against Corruption, held in 2015 in Paris, the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan, including the Anti-Corruption General Directorate with the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, were admitted to the membership of this organization.