The head of ARMA, Olena Duma, held a working meeting with acting Head of the office of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Ukraine. The purpose of the meeting was to get acquainted with the head of the regional office of the OECD, outline the current state of affairs, ARMA's achievements and existing challenges in the work of the National Agency.

We will remind that in 2023, the OECD monitored the activities of ARMA for 2022 and the first half of 2023. Based on the results of the monitoring, recommendations were provided, which ARMA is gradually implementing. In particular, public access to the Register of seized assets was opened, measures were taken to improve the management of seized assets, and cooperation with other anti-corruption bodies was established.

The head of the OECD office in Ukraine presented the projects implemented by the Organization in Ukraine and noted possible areas of cooperation by the Agency

For her part, the Head of ARMA thanked the OECD for its comprehensive support and noted that the discussed remarks and conclusions of the OECD report for 2022 and the first half of 2023 clearly demonstrated the need for radical changes. She added that the new ARMA team not only corrected problematic issues, but is already actively setting the tone for other bodies in certain directions.

"This is a truly significant meeting for ARMA. The OECD is a real observer of the activities of state and anti-corruption bodies. We are glad to hear positive feedback, to feel assistance and constant support in such difficult times for the history of Ukraine. We are grateful to the OECD for constructive cooperation and support for reforms in the National Agency. Today's meeting is an important step in the further strengthening of our cooperation and implementation of international standards in the sphere of management of seized assets in Ukraine", - emphasized the Head of ARMA Olena Duma.​​​​​​

During the meeting, Olena Duma presented other key achievements of the National Agency in the recent period, in particular:

• Strengthening international cooperation: in 2024, interagency agreements on tracing and asset management were signed with five countries, negotiations are underway with another nine. ARMA actively cooperates with international organizations, in particular, it is a member of the Camden Asset Recovery Inter-agency Network (CARIN) and a member of the BAMIN Supervisory Board.
• Approval by the Government of the action plan for the implementation of the Asset Recovery Strategy for 2024-2025, developed by ARMA. This document is a road map for improving the system of management of seized assets in Ukraine.
• A significant increase in the amount of seized funds in the ARMA administration: from 5 billion UAH at the end of 2023 to over 7.5 billion UAH today. A further increase of this amount to almost 10 billion UAH is expected.
• ARMA has already provided almost 1.8 billion UAH in revenue to the State Budget of Ukraine in 2024 thanks to the effective management and sale of seized assets.
• ARMA became the only state body in Ukraine that can purchase bonds of the internal state loan "Military Bonds". Active acquisition of military bonds has already been carried out in the amount of about 5.5 billion UAH. Also, thanks to legislative changes initiated by ARMA, the Agency can now purchase OVDP at the expense of seized funds in foreign currency. ARMA has already purchased Military bonds worth 31 million US dollars. It is planned to purchase bonds for another 6.5 million euros.

Also, during the meeting, ARMA initiatives that require the involvement of international technical assistance were discussed, in particular, the creation of the office of reforms, the office of international advisers and the improvement of the Register of Seized Assets.

For reference. In the summer of 2022, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, submitted an application for our country to join the OECD. The OECD unites 37 of the most developed countries in the world. The goal of the OECD is to create the best solutions for public policy that will promote economic prosperity, equal opportunities and well-being.