Representatives of law enforcement bodies, the Mejlis (parliament), financial institutions and other relevant agencies of Turkmenistan discussed the role of digital technologies in investigating and reducing the risks of corruption at an OSCE-organized webinar that opened on 12 October 2020 in Ashgabat.

The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat organized the three-day event to share best practices of OSCE participating States in the use of digital technologies in preventing and combating corruption.

International experts briefed participants about the scope and sphere of applying IT in the fight against corruption with a focus on transparency, accountability, preventative detection and ethical behavior.

“As sophisticated methods and modern technologies are increasingly employed in criminal activities, such as corruption, it is important to make active use of digital instruments to optimize efforts aimed at strengthening transparency of the activities of state institutions and ensuring prompt information exchange among relevant institutions, as well as studying and tracking links in criminal chains,” said Natalya Drozd, Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat.

Participants examined the specifics of introducing information technologies in anti-corruption practices and their role in the implementation of anti-corruption strategies.

“It is our hope that the webinar will contribute to the efforts of the host government aimed at introducing digital technologies in national anti-corruption activities as well as the development of relevant institutional and legislative mechanisms,” added Drozd.

The webinar also addressed methods of investigation and digital tracking of corruption cases. Additionally participants explored artificial intelligence as one of the most efficient instruments in the prevention of corruption.