The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said on Monday that the organization, along with domestic and foreign organizations and business associations, will collaborate with the government of Ukraine to combat corruption.
The Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Initiative, established at a ceremony in Kiev, aims to improve the investment climate and to strengthen the economic outlook by ensuring greater accountability and transparency and more effective rule of law within the Ukrainian economy, the EBRD said in a release.
"Corruption is a scourge, hollowing out the economy, eating away at political life and undermining democracy," EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti said. "Signing this memorandum and launching this initiative will not stop corruption. It is, though, an important step, but just the first step, down a very long road. We salute the government of Ukraine for its determination to tackle this fundamental problem regardless of the adverse geopolitical situation in the country."
Under the initiative, an independently funded Business Ombudsman Institution will be set up for the first time in Ukraine. It will be the first point of contact for companies seeking redress against unfair treatment and will provide for greater transparency of business practices in the region.
The memorandum was signed by Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenuyk, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, the European Business Association, the Federation of Ukrainian Employers, the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.
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