The Russian authorities have expressed concern that corruption and bureaucratic pressure on business is one of the main causes which hinders national economic growth and development in the country. It has also been recognized that raiding practices are carried out with the participation of bureaucratic structures or individual officials interested in gaining control of a business. Through the joint project on the “Protection of the Rights of Entrepreneurs in the Russian Federation from Corrupt Practices” - PRECOP RF - the European Union (EU) and the Council of Europe (CoE) in cooperation with the Business Ombudsman’s Office in the Russian Federation and other stakeholder institutions aims to facilitate and contribute to the implementation of mechanisms to prevent corrupt practices affecting the business sector in the Russian Federation. Specifically, the project will strengthen the capacity of the Business Ombudsman institutions and other authorities involved in protecting the rights of entrepreneurs in the Russian Federation from corrupt practices.

The project on “Protection of the Rights of Entrepreneurs in the Russian Federation from Corrupt Practices” is a joint action of the European Union and the Council of Europe. The project is implemented by the Council of Europe and has a foreseen length of 36 months starting from January 2013. The total amount of the budget is 1.3 million EUR jointly contributed by the EU Delegation in the Russian Federation and the Council of Europe.

Following are the expected results:

1. Institutions of regional and public Ombudsmen are informed about the role, objectives and competencies of the Ombudsman for the Protection of Entrepreneurs’ Rights under the President of the Russian Federation and international standards and practices of comparable institutions
2. Overview of good practices in CoE member-states and proposals for protecting whistle-blowers in the area of corruption are available
3. Proposals are available to strengthen measures to prevent the misuse of public authorities corporate in conflicts, eliminating competition and forced takeovers
4. Practice of pro bono legal assistance in the protection of the rights of entrepreneurs is expanded
5. Proposals are available on resolving systemic problems of entrepreneurship for the Experts’ Council under the Ombudsman for the Protection of Entrepreneurs’ Rights under the President of the Russian Federation
6. Awareness of the business community is raised with regard to the risks of infringement of entrepreneurial rights and possible methods for their protection
7. ECtHR-case law relevant to entrepreneurs rights and related corrupt practices is made available and disseminated