Skopje, 18 May 2023 (MIA) - The biggest complaint of citizens is the lack of order in the institutions' functioning, and absence of order is a prerequisite for confusion where corruption works best. Rules, procedures and standards are the foundations of a healthy society. Setting up a stable and efficient system will reduce the possibility for abuse and any form of risks to the minimum, said Deputy PM for good governance policies Slavica Grkovska in her address at the national conference for accreditation of international standards as a tool for prevention of corruption, organized by the Accreditation Institute of North Macedonia on Thursday.

Deputy PM Grkovska said prevention of corruption and building information stability and resilience requires introduction of standards and their application in the public and private sectors.

"Citizens expect us to pass measures in order to improve processes that directly affect the quality of life, and reducing corruption is part of these processes, but also efficient, swift and secure institutions that ensure efficient and quality services. This is possible only through close and coordinated cooperation among all institutions in order to achieve the common goal - an efficient and secure system in the citizens' interest," said Grkovska.

Accreditation Institute director Slobodan Chokrevski said standard ISO 27001 refers to information security, and addresses the critical state of IT safety.

"We have witnessed numerous cyberattacks on institutions and companies, which do not concern only them but citizens as well. The best tool to fight this is ISO 27001, which is the fundamental standard that sets the framework of security of communications in the digital space," said Chokrevski.

The conference aimed to start a discussion and an exchange of opinions over the initiative to implement the ISO 37001 anti-bribery management system standard and the ISO 27001 information security management systems standard, share good practices from EU members that have implemented these standards, as well as discuss legislative requirements for introduction of standards in public institutions.

The conference is part of the Anti-Corruption and Integrity Activity, funded by USAID and implemented by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES).