Important areas will be reviewed during the second round: government procurement, government hiring, whistleblower protection and specific acts of corruption that should be classified as crimes. The extent to which the States Party have implemented the recommendations issued to each country by the Committee of Experts will also be reviewed.

Transparency International (TI) attributes the success represented by the incorporation of these topics to the advocacy efforts undertaken by civil society in September 2005. It was then requested that the Committee review some of these areas.

Whether the countries have a legal framework in place for each area that includes appropriate mechanisms and measurable results will also be ascertained. In the area of government procurement, for example, what legal regulations govern this system in the countries of the Americas, what mechanisms are used by the government to procure goods and services, what oversight bodies and mechanisms are in place, whether or not a roster of contractors exists, what evaluation criteria is used, what e-methods and information systems are used, and if resources exist to challenge the decision of the entity that made the award will also be verified. This type of review will be repeated for each area.

The recommendations issued in the first round, which will also be taken into account in this round, include the prevention of conflicts of interest, duty to report acts of corruption, mechanisms for the proper use of public resources, high-level oversight bodies, asset declaration, and mechanisms for the involvement of civil society in the prevention of corruption.

For more information about the recommendations issued for each country, please click here.