Kernel Ukrainian Agro-Industrial Group received an award from the UN Global Compact in Ukraine for its contribution to the creation of an anti-corruption video course. The course explains the principles of transparent business conduct and anti-corruption practices for small and medium enterprises.
According to the holding’s Facebook page, it joined the circle of organizations that worked on the development of the UN Global Compact’s Anti-Corruption program in Ukraine.
It is specified that the video course consists of five training modules lasting 5-8 minutes each, which reveal the principles of transparent business conduct and anti-corruption practices in Ukraine. You can watch the educational series on the portal “Diya.Biznes” and the platform “Diya.Digital Education”.
The course is designed to deepen entrepreneurs’ knowledge of anti-corruption processes to keep the country’s economy healthy.
“Kernel” before the war was the world’s number one producer of sunflower oil (about 7% of world production) and its exports (about 12%), and was the largest producer and seller of bottled sunflower oil in Ukraine. In addition, the company was involved in other agricultural products cultivation and sales.
The largest co-owner of Kernel, through Namsen Ltd. is Ukrainian businessman Andrei Verevskyi, with a 39.3% stake.
In FY2022 (July-2021 – June-2022), the holding posted net loss of $41 mln against $506 mln net profit in the previous FY. Its revenue decreased by 5% – to $5.332 bln, while EBITDA decreased 3.7 times – to $220 mln.
The head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (CFG), Oleksandr Klymenko, decided to cancel the decision to close the so-called “Rotterdam + case” as illegal and unfounded, the SAP press service reports.
It is noted that Klymenko also completely changed the group of prosecutors in this case due to ineffective supervision over compliance with laws during the pre-trial investigation.
“Such decisions were made based on the results of studying the case materials, a thorough study of the findings of prosecutors during the closure of this criminal proceeding, and the results of a meeting with the participation of prosecutors and detectives from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, who carried out the pre-trial investigation,” the report explains.
It is specified that the head of the SAP revealed “numerous inconsistencies in the conclusions and arguments of the prosecutor when closing this case, the incompleteness of the study of the case materials by the prosecutor, the inconsistency of the prosecutor’s conclusions with the actual circumstances of the criminal proceedings.”
“This means that further decisions on this case will be made by the renewed composition of prosecutors in full compliance with the requirements of the Criminal Procedure Code,” the SAP stressed.
They recalled that on September 21, 2022, the Appeals Chamber of the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court (VAKS) completed consideration of the appeal against the ruling of the investigating judge of the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court dated October 13 of the same year to refuse to satisfy the complaint against the decision to close criminal proceedings.
Based on the results of the consideration, the collegium of the court partially canceled the decision of the investigating judge and closed the proceedings on complaints from representatives of Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant JSC and Zaporozhye Ferroalloy Plant JSC against the decision of the SAPO prosecutor to close criminal proceedings dated March 24, 2017.
“The SAP is awaiting the full text of the said court decision. The legal position of the court set forth in the full text of the decision will be taken into account in the further pre-trial investigation and decision-making on the case. At the same time, the illegality and groundlessness of the prosecutor’s decision to close this proceeding does not cause any doubt,” the prosecutor’s office concluded.
Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) Artem Sytnyk has said that the next year will show whether the anti-corruption processes in Ukraine will become irreversible.
“Today, all anti-corruption bodies work together and are fused in some way, complement each other. We have reached the highest level of our work in cooperation,” Sytnyk said on Thursday in Kyiv at the Seven Years of Anti-Corruption Reforms conference, timed to coincide with the International Anti-Corruption Day.
According to him, work with international partners has also been established.
“We will continue to work not only with punitive methods, but with methods that are aimed at preventing corruption, at fostering zero tolerance for corruption in society,” Sytnyk said.
At the same time, the director of NABU said that it is too early to assert about the inevitability of anti-corruption processes in Ukraine.
“In the next year, I think we will receive an answer whether the anti-corruption reform in Ukraine is irreversible, whether the results we are getting in very difficult conditions are irreversible,” he said.
According to Sytnyk, for seven years there have been constant attempts to limit the powers of anti-corruption bodies, to deprive them of their powers. “Each anti-corruption body that starts to work actively always receives some kind of decisions – by the parliament or the Constitutional Court – aimed at depriving them of their powers,” the NABU director said.
“We are not stopping our struggle. And, despite the fact that the anti-corruption system is now experiencing a change of leadership, – now it concerns the anti-corruption prosecutor’s office, and in the near future it will concern the anti-corruption bureau – I believe that the system itself is formed, effective, institutionally independent and ready for further action,” Sytnyk said.
Independent experts as part of selection committees that select and vet officials for Ukraine’s judiciary and anti-corruption institutions will achieve changes that will be the most fundamental renewal of Ukraine’s judiciary since independence, the U.S. Embassy and EU delegation to Ukraine said.
“The involvement of independent experts is in compliance with international standards: their crucial role is temporary and justified by the extraordinary circumstances presented by the opportunity Ukraine now has to take a decisive step toward its destiny as a modern European nation,” a joint statement by the U.S. Embassy and the Delegation of the European Union posted on the website of the U.S. Embassy on Wednesday reads.
According to the diplomats, to seize that destiny, “we, as friends of Ukraine, stand with Ukraine’s leaders and ask them to act with political courage.” “As they consider the future, we urge them to think back upon the desires of the Ukrainian people. It is reform they demanded during the Revolution of Dignity and voted for, over and over again, in elections. It is now up to Ukraine’s leaders to make good on their promises. When they do so, there is no doubt but that the Ukrainian people will thank them,” it says.
The U.S. Embassy and the Delegation of the European Union believe that one critical prerequisite for the success of these reforms is the role independent experts, nominated by international partners of Ukraine, in the commissions that select and vet the individuals who serve in Ukraine’s judiciary and anti-corruption institutions — bodies that have enormous power to shape the future of Ukraine.
“It is a future where the country either remains beholden to the powerful interests who use their resources to protect themselves from justice or where all are entitled to equal protection before the law. Because these commissions will ensure that candidates with the highest professional competence and integrity will be selected as Ukraine’s future judges, Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor, and NABU Director – those who will hold the corrupt to account – they have an important role in shaping Ukraine’s destiny,” the statement reads.
It is noted that for the same reason, the role of independent experts has become one of the most important issues in discussions about the future of the reform agenda in Ukraine.
“Independent experts threaten those who benefit from the current system and seek to retain control over the levers of power in Ukraine. Ukraine has proven that this is a successful reform model to ensure that a commission serves the Ukrainian people, and not the vested interests that seek to control it. The ongoing competition for the SAPO leadership serves as proof that independent experts’ decisive role in the selection process is critical to ensure that decisions are merit-based and not politically-motivated,” it says.
It is also noted that he Venice Commission clearly stated that giving the international members a prevailing vote in case of a tie after a repeat vote is acceptable from the viewpoint of national sovereignty, given that final decisions remain with the appointing body.
“The current draft laws, including on the High Qualification Commission of Judges, that are now in parliament need to be aligned with the Venice Commission opinion before their second and final reading,” the U.S. Embassy and the Delegation of the European Union stated.
The State Agency for Roads of Ukraine (Ukravtodor), within the framework of a joint anti-corruption project, will reconfigure its management and procurement practices in accordance with the recommendations of the consultants of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
On Tuesday, March 12, a kick-off meeting was held on the development and implementation of the Anti-Corruption Action Plan for the road industry of Ukraine within the framework of the specified joint project, Ukravtodor said on its Telegram channel.
The loan agreement between Ukravtodor and the EBRD worth EUR 450 million, signed in December last year, provides for the implementation of four important reforms for the road industry: procurement reform, improved traffic safety, development of infrastructure for electric transport and anti-corruption reform.
“We highly appreciate the initiative of Ukravtodor to implement this project, because it should result in a completely updated management system for the road industry. In case of a successful launch of an anti-corruption pilot project in Ukravtodor, this experience can be scaled up to other business entities and public sector organizations who are partners of the EBRD in Ukraine,” head of transport projects of the EBRD Andriy Tsokol is quoted as saying in the message.
The Basel Institute on Governance (Switzerland), an international non-profit anti-corruption organization that works in partnership with the Ukrainian law firm Sayenko Kharenko, has been involved in the work on the implementation of anti-corruption reform.
“By May of this year, the consultants will study and analyze the procurement and management processes in Ukravtodor from the point of view of preventing corruption. Based on the study, it is planned to finalize and approve the Anti-Corruption Action Plan in July 2021. Until 2023, the consultant will accompany the implementation of the Plan in Ukravtodor and its subdivisions,” the message reads.
Head of Ukravtodor Oleksandr Kubrakov also noted that over the past year the agency managed to create uniform procurement rules in the industry, introduce independent technical supervision and additional control of design decisions.
“We worked to prevent corruption risks by digitalizing management processes and improving executive and financial discipline. A pilot project with the EBRD gives a chance for these changes to become irreversible,” he stressed.
As reported, Ukravtodor initiated the inclusion of the Anti-Corruption Pilot Project in the loan agreement with the EBRD in the spring of 2020. The terms of the agreement provide for the mandatory implementation of reforms in order to receive credit tranches.
ANTI-CORRUPTION, ANTI-CORRUPTION PROJECT, EBRD, LAUNCHES, LAUNCHES PROJECT, STATE AGENCY FOR ROADS
The competition for the election of the head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) may begin in December this year, and taking into account the possible lockdown, it will be completed by spring 2021, Acting Head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) Maksym Hryschuk has said.
In an exclusive interview with the Interfax-Ukraine agency, Hryschuk said that the competition committee had already held a number of meetings. “When they decide on the regulations, they will announce the start of the competition. Perhaps it will be in December,” he said.
Answering the question on whether he will take part in the competition, Hryschuk said: “I still want to keep an intrigue. The competition has not yet been officially announced, so it is unethical to talk about participation in it.”
Speaking about when we can expect a new head of the SAPO, elected at the competition, he said that it takes time to submit documents and conduct three stages of the competition, and the situation with the epidemic should also be taken into account.
“I think it will be around January-February. And if a lockdown is introduced now, it may still drag on,” he said.
The full text of the interview will be published on the Interfax-Ukraine website in the public domain.
