Six regional governments and five provincial municipalities in Peru are taking part in an ambitious global pilot to improve public financial management (PFM) for the benefit of their citizens.

Senior management and technical representatives from the 11 regions and municipalities – which have been receiving support from the Subnational PFM Programme funded by the Swiss SECO Cooperation and implemented by the Basel Institute’s Peru team – came together for an international workshop in the Peruvian capital Lima from 29–31 May 2019.

An exclusive interview with Elmer Chirre Castillo (photo: right), Provincial Prosecutor of the Third Anti-Corruption Supraprovincial Prosecutor's Office of Lima. 

By Oscar Solorzano (photo: left), Senior Asset Recovery Specialist and Country Manager for the Basel Institute's Peru country office.

Experts from the Basel Institute's Peru country office trained 30 members of the Peruvian Procuraduría in a novel form of non-conviction-based asset recovery last week.

Elmer Chirre, Peru's Specialised Prosecutor for Corruption, and Amado Enco, Specialised Anti-Corruption State Attorney, have jointly recovered over PEN 65 million (USD 19.5 million) in the first successful asset recovery case related to Operation Car Wash.

The Basel Institute's Peru team is launching a new free virtual course in open government. Running from 3 June to 30 June 2019, the four online modules cover:

Peru's pioneering Public Finance Management Experts Network has continued to expand, with the Andean city of Cusco being the latest to join.

The High Court of Piura in northwestern Peru has announced it will set up a specialised court for cases relating to a new law on extinción de dominio (which roughly translates as "extinction of possession"), a form of non-conviction-based asset forfeiture.

The story of José Velásquez, former student of the Public Finance Management Diploma of our SECO-funded Subnational Public Finance Management Programme in Peru, offers an insight into how smart initiatives to build capacity among public servants can have a real impact. José has won a scholarship to continue his studies at the University of Chile. He plans to return afterwards to his home country in order to apply his new skills and knowledge to improve public financial management processes in Peru.

The regional government of La Libertad in Peru has published a Code of Conduct for staff, civil society and the media in the region. The Code was co-created by regional government officials and the Subnational PFM Programme of the Swiss SECO Cooperation, implemented by the Basel Institute in Peru.

The Public Ministry of the Peruvian region of La Libertad organised a seminar on “seeking effective mechanisms in the fight against corruption and money laundering” last week. Supported by the Subnational PFM Programme of the Swiss SECO Cooperation and the Basel Institute’s International Centre for Asset Recovery, the event was attended by more than 300 participants.