Practical questions and answers related to a
National Anti-Fraud Strategy
Andon Tashukov, Legal
Adviser of AFCOS Bulgaria
 Why does a Member-State need a National Anti-Fraud Strategy?
 What is the possible AFCOS role in elaborating NAFS?
 What period should the Strategy and its Action plan address?
 Is any political support needed?
 Problems in elaborating the Bulgarian NAFS
 The first National Anti-Fraud Strategy was adopted in 2005 by the Council of
Ministers. The aims of the First strategy were:
To ensure the efficient prevention and fight against fraud, misuse,
management or utilization of EU funds;
inefficient
To detect and suppress fraud, misuse, ineffective management or
financial assets and property belonging to the European Union
the Bulgarian state.
utilization of
or provided to
To develop a common approach towards the prevention and fight against
corruption within the state institutions ... to achieve as an ultimate goal,
high level protection of the EC’s financial interests’
 The last (current) National Strategy for Prevention and Fight Against Irregularities
and Fraud Affecting the EU Financial Interests for the period 2014-2020 was
adopted by the Bulgarian Government in 2014 and its goals cover the priorities of
the Bulgarian institutions in the field of protection of the EU financial interests until
2020. Every two years an action plan is adopted with particular measures to be
implemented for achievement of the strategic goals.
 Main purpose is to improve prevention, detection and counteraction in
relation to irregularities and fraud affecting the EU's financial interests.
 The Strategy focuses on defining the responsibilities of the involved
institutions, increasing the efficiency of investigative activities, the level of
recovery of misused EU funds and imposing proportional and dissuasive
sanctions.
 Four strategic objectives : 1) improving prevention, 2) increasing the
efficiency in detection and counteraction to irregularities and fraud, 3)
strengthening the cooperation with OLAF and the competent EU institutions,
Member States and other countries and 4) increasing the efficiency of
investigative, recovery and sanctioning measures.
 ensures the effective and efficient protection of the EU financial
interests;
 creates a link of cooperation between the expenditure and revenue
part of the budget;
 creates a stronger position for negotiating additional funding from
the EU budget;
 improves the prevention, detection and fight against irregularities
and fraud;
 achieves a higher degree of recovery of unduly spent funds from
the budget of the European Union;
 sets out a better working framework upon which the institutions
involved in the process of implementation and control of EU funds
could work together determines more precisely the roles and
responsibilities of the institutions involved;
 creates and/or develops new methods for prevention and
combating fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting
the financial interests of the Union;
 contributes for the imposing of proportionate and dissuasive
penalties in accordance with the applicable law;
 creates a framework with recommendations or actions to improve
the administrative capacity;
 answers the need for transparency in the process of protecting the
EU’s financial interests;
 improves the access to information for the general public, since the
NAFS is a public document;
 creates a floor for legal development of the national framework,
update and renewal of cooperation agreements and modus
operandi;
 ensures the effective coordination of a legislative, administrative
and operational activities of the institutions;
 strengthens the cooperation with OLAF as well as with the
competent EU institutions, EU Member States and other countries;
 organize and coordinate the process of elaboration of NAFS
and its Action plan;
 perform the screening of the organizational structure, actors,
measures and procedures already in place;
 conduct a fraud risk assessment and properly assess the
current situation of a country regarding the anti-fraud
measures in place taking into account all four stages of the
anti-fraud cycle;
 make an evaluation of the current situation regarding
irregularities and fraud;
 determine the scope and extension of NAFS and set an indicative
calendar for the preparation of NAFS;
 do the planning and divide the tasks of elaborations of NAFS and
Action plan;
 serve as a Secretariat or Chair of the political organizational body
that will provide political support for the adoption of the
Strategy;
 mobilize experts from the different authorities and services,
representing both side of the budget – the expenditure part and
the revenue part and also from the judicial authorities, the
prosecutor’s office and law-enforcement authorities (e.g.
Ministry of interior).
 be responsible for the updating of the Strategy and the
Acton plan;
 disseminate information and materials amongst the
participants/institutions;
 seek assistance/support from international partners,
like OLAF, European Commission etc.
 involve the federal/regional level authorities;
 raise awareness on the elaboration of NAFS (and
include the Civil Society) and its adoption;
1.
Period addressed by the Strategy:
a) The first option is to link the Strategy directly with the Operational
programmes. The current MFF covers the 2014-2020 periods.
b) The Strategy could apply to regardless of the MFF (period set
independently)
2. Period adressed by the Action plan:
Since the Action plan is based on the priorities identified in the NAFS and the
correlating objectives, it will comprise of specific tasks. This means that the
Action plan will be constantly updated or amended for the period of its effect. A
suggested approach is not to link the duration of the Action plan with the
duration of the Strategy. The NAFS shall represent a general guidance for the
Member-states set within the duration of the multiannual financial framework
or outside of it, whilst the Action plan will work with the specific tasks.
The recommended approach is to set an annual Action plan which will be
evaluated at the end of each calendar year.
 Given the wide range and number of bodies involved, the service(s)
responsible for elaborating the NAFS strategy may need the full
political support of the Government.
 The NAFS shall be binding for all involved subjects, therefore it is
highly recommended for the Member-states to create a political body,
primarily responsible for providing political support to AFCOS and all
bodies involved in the process of organization, coordination,
elaboration, adoption and control of the NAFS. For the NAFS to be
binding, the Strategy itself must be adopted with a legal act, such as
an act of the Parliament, the Government etc.
 The political body shall also provide for the representation and
mobilization of all the institutions involved in the protection of the
financial interests of the European Union, in order to contribute to the
NAFS. In this sense, the political body shall also have organizational
functions (e.g. organizational political body).
The political body must:
 provide political support for the elaboration and
adoption of NAFS;
 collaborate effectively with the designated national
service which will elaborate the NAFS;
 represent as many as possible of the institutions,
engaged in the process of implementation and control
of EU Funds, possibly even civil society;
 What are/were the problems identified in Bulgaria?
 Which problems were solvable with the Strategy?
 Which issues were left to deal within the sectorial
strategy documents?
 How are the cooperation issues dealt with in other
MS within AFCOS network, which usually includes a
variety of authorities?
 How are the competency issues separated?
MINISTRY OF INTERIOR
“Protection of the European Union’s financial interests”
Directorate AFCOS Bulgaria
Sofia, sq. “Sveta Nedelya” № 6
e-mail: [email protected]
website: http://afcos.bg
tel. +359 2 9401445