Civil Servant Training Modules (BA0003)

Which public issue will be addressed by this obligation?
Strengthening the awareness of the harmfulness of corruption and the strengthening of ethics and professional integrity of civil servants.

What is the obligation?
Creating and distributing a survey that will be compulsory for civil servants employed in BiH institutions in order to determine the state of the personal integrity of civil servants. Based on the conducted survey, analysis is to be made of the existing state of integrity in the civil service. The Agency, in cooperation with NGO INFOHOUSE, initiates activities on the development of online education aimed at improving the knowledge of civil servants regarding the drafting of integrity plans in institutions in BiH as well as on the issue of strengthening ethics and professional integrity. Creation as well as the publication of online modules on the official site of the Agency.

How will the fulfilment of the obligation contribute to the solving of the public problem?
Training is designed to improve and develop institutional capacities, improve the role of employees in state institutions, contribute to the prevention, monitoring and detection of corruptive behaviours.

Why is this obligation relevant to OGP values?
It is important to improve human resource capacities, to achieve an adequate structure of employees to maximize and enhance their capabilities in the area of corruption prevention (development of institutional and human capacity in the area of corruption prevention). To raise awareness of the damaging effects of corruption as well as emphasizing the importance that the institutions are employing professional and impartial staff whose function is to serve the citizens.

Goals/activities
Designing and making a survey for civil servants
Distribution of the survey to the civil servants .
Analysis and publication of collected data
Preparation of materials needed for education
Preparing moodle for education
Publication of moodle on the official website of the Agency and sending notices to civil servants about the possibility of attending the said education

3. Development of online training modules for civil servants in the process of drafting and implementing integrity plans

Main Objective

"Creating and distributing a survey that will be compulsory for civil servants employed in BiH institutions in order to determine the state of the personal integrity of civil servants. Based on the conducted survey, analysis is to be made of the existing state of integrity in the civil service. The Agency, in cooperation with NGO INFOHOUSE, initiates activities on the development of online education aimed at improving the knowledge of civil servants regarding the drafting of integrity plans in institutions in BiH as well as on the issue of strengthening ethics and professional integrity. Creation as well as the publication of online modules on the official site of the Agency."

"Training is designed to improve and develop institutional capacities, improve the role of employees in state institutions, contribute to the prevention, monitoring and detection of corruptive behaviors."

Milestones

"3.1. Designing and making a survey for civil servants.

3.2. Distribution of the survey to the civil servants.

3.3. Analysis and publication of collected data.

3.4. Preparation of materials needed for education.

3.5. Preparing moodle for education.

3.6. Publication of moodle on the official website of the Agency and sending notices to civil servants about the possibility of attending the said education."

Editorial Note: For the complete text of this commitment, please see Bosnia and Herzegovina's action plan at https://www.opengovpartnership.org/documents/bosnia-and-herzegovina-action-plan-2019-2021/.

Commitment Analysis

The aim of this commitment is to support the integrity self-assessment processes of individual civil servants. It complements the aims of commitment 2 by providing a learning module on development of integrity plans through an online platform.

Education on integrity plans is an integral part of anti-corruption training of civil servants working in public institutions. These trainings are implemented by the state and entity agencies for civil service in cooperation with the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and Coordination against Corruption of BiH (APCCC). Aside from integrity plans, these trainings cover themes such as anti-corruption regulation, conflict of interest, whistleblower protection, and other related subjects. In addition to these trainings, the APCCC organized an extensive number of workshops in the 2015–2017 period for civil servants of institutions at all levels of government. [27] Therefore, most civil servants in the country are acquainted with the integrity plan framework and have received some form of training on it. Some training workshops were held in cooperation with the civil society organizations ACCOUNT and Association Analitika. [28]

Through the support of the USAID and in cooperation with Foundation INFOHOUSE, the moodle, an online training platform for civil servants on integrity plans, was developed and open as of February 2019. [29] The training entails four parts. The first part consists of one single document wherein the anti-corruption legislation for all levels of government is listed. This list, however, only includes lists of laws and not actual sections or parts directly relevant to civil servants. The second part includes various text documents which serve as guides, such as the 'Guidebook on the rules for developing and implementing an integrity plan for institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina'. [30]The third section includes samples of integrity questionnaires for different types of institutions. Finally, in the fourth section, an online test is available. If the course is fully completed, an online certificate is issued for the course participant. In addition to these, the supplementary course materials include two short videos from civil society on integrity plans and a web forum, although not a single post has been made by the time of writing. [31] Considering the predominantly textual information in the course materials, participants could benefit from more interactive course features, particularly visuals.

The commitment has limited relevance to the OGP values, as it entails an internal governmental education program for public officials on integrity plans. The milestones do not include the actual realization and monitoring of online trainings. Furthermore, the commitment language is particularly vague around deliverables, as it implies realization of a survey and online training platform without clear indication of their scope, design, and expected audience. In fact, the moodle has been online since February 2019, and some trainings were already completed before the plan was adopted. The platform and agency reports do not provide statistical data on the number of participants in the online course. Finally, the lack of potential impact is an accurate assessment because extensive education workshops on integrity plans have been organized for civil servants over several years without any noticeable changes having occurred in institutional practices in the recent period. [32]

Moving forward, implementation of the commitment would benefit from set targets on the number of officials who undergo the online training. The training materials and statistical information on the number of public officials who have used the moodle, possibly disaggregated by institution, could be made publicly available.

Commitment 3. Development of online training modules for civil servants in the process of drafting and implementing integrity plans

Substantial:

Implementing activities under this commitment commenced prior to the adoption of the action plan. The Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of the Fight against Corruption, in cooperation with the Foundation INFOHOUSE and with USAID support, implemented an online training platform designed for civil servants on integrity plans. The agency launched the online course in February 2019 [18] and it is open to any individual upon registration. Only 61 participants have completed the course. [19]

The training entails four parts. The first part is one single document listing the anti-corruption legislation for all levels of government. This list, however, only lists laws and not actual sections or parts directly relevant to civil servants. The second part includes various guides, such as the Guidebook on the rules for developing and implementing an integrity plan for institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The third section includes samples of integrity questionnaires for different types of institutions. Finally, in the fourth section, an online test is available (Milestones 3.1 and 3.2 describe it as a survey). Upon full completion, the course participant receives an online certificate. In addition, supplementary course materials include two short videos from civil society on integrity plans and a web forum (although not a single post had been made on the forum by the end of the implementation period). [20] Considering the predominantly textual information in the course materials, participants could benefit from more interactive course features, particularly visuals.