KIEV: The EBRD has welcomed the publication of the first Annual Report of the Business Ombudsman Council of Ukraine (BOC) and praised the independent institution’s work.
“The Business Ombudsman has become the first point of contact for domestic and international businesses seeking redress against unfair treatment. The organisation has truly established itself as a bastion of transparent, unbiased attitudes towards businesses across the country”, said EBRD Director for Ukraine, Sevki Acuner. The first Annual Report presents the Business Ombudsman’s results for 2015, the first year of operations for the institution which was launched with support of the EBRD.
In the reporting period May-December 2015, the BOC launched 342 investigations and successfully closed 151 cases. As a result of these cases, a total of over UAH 2.7 billion (over $100 million) was returned to affected businesses, according to EBRD.
Since the start of operations in May 2015, the BOC moved forward with 58 per cent out of the 585 complaints received from businesses from all regions of Ukraine.
As a result of investigations, the BOC provided 123 recommendations to the respective government agencies, of which 63 per cent were implemented by the end of 2015. The Business Ombudsman is a key element of the Anti-Corruption Initiative agreed under a Memorandum of Understanding signed in May 2014. The Anti-Corruption Initiative was launched as part of an international effort to improve the investment climate in Ukraine, which is greatly affected by corruption.
Algirdas Šemeta, Business Ombudsman of Ukraine, said: “In less than a year we have achieved significant results for hundreds of Ukrainian businesses. The government agencies defer to us and are ready to cooperate. “We still have a long road ahead of us: cases to solve, investigations to conduct, legislation to discuss and draft, more government institutions to partner with, more businesses to protect. “Our team has grown and gained experience, so I am confident that we, together, can make the big change happen – one small step after the other.”
