The European Commission (EC) selected an Italian-Spanish consortium led by the Italian National Anti-Corruption Authority (ANAC) to conduct a joint project aimed at strengthening corruption prevention and control mechanisms in Serbia, the Italian Embassy in Belgrade said in a release on July 10.

Besides ANAC, the consortium includes the Italian Ministry of Justice and the Higher School of the Judiciary, which will cooperate with Spanish institutions – the Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policies and the Special Prosecutor’s Office against Corruption and Organized Crime.

The Italian agency will work closely with Serbia’s Anti-Corruption Agency and other authorized institutions, with which the bilateral cooperation has already been established, the release states.

The EU-funded project is worth EUR two million, and its aim is to identify and conduct the activities needed to improve the anti-corruption system in Serbia and ensure its compliance with the EU standards.

This is a very important rule of law project, one of strategic importance to Serbia’s EU integration process, which Italy strongly supports, Italian Ambassador to Serbia Giuseppe Manzo said.

Tanjug         July 10, 2015