Successful year 2012/2013 for the International Ombudsman Institute

In accordance with the IOI’s By-laws, one member of the Austrian Ombudsman Board (AOB) undertakes extensive responsibility as Secretary General, assisted by the General Secretariat which is located in the Office of the AOB in Vienna. Former Ombudsman Dr. Peter Kostelka acquired great merits by the IOI’s relocation from Edmonton in Canada to Vienna.

IOI Secretary General Günther Kräuter is convinced that Austria can contribute most meaningfully by providing professional organisation, engagement as well as creativity.  

The IOI, organised in six regional chapters, assists its members by conducting seminars, projects and regional strategies for subvention in order to strengthen independent control of the public administration as well as the protection of human rights standards. The IOI’s traditional fields of activities will be broadened by projects against corruption and for the support of ombudsman institutions that are entrusted as National Preventive Mechanisms (NPM) for the protection and promotion of human rights.

One of the IOI’s political objectives is to develop a concerted global strategy with regard to privatisation and spin-off tendencies of facilities responsible for the provision of basic services. The preservation of independent public control and the restoration of competences that have partially been lost constitute an enormous challenge worldwide.

In the framework of the last world conference in November 2012 in Wellington, New Zealand, the IOI’s statutes were revised and modernised. In the thematic context of “The Ombudsman in the 21^st century”, representatives of Ombudsman institutions from around the world focussed on topics such as freedom of information, new technologies and the role of the ombudsman institutions in the protection and promotion of human rights.

In the course of two board meetings in 2013 (in spring in Vienna and in autumn in New York City), a vast number of projects for trainings, subventions and research was developed and initiated. The cooperation with the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA), located in Austria, was a huge success as well. The Academy conducted a successful training for IOI member institutions.

In the past year, the IOI accepted 15 new members, including ombudsman institutions in Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Bahrain, Curaçao, Athens, Kosovo, Latvia and Rotterdam.

The total number of members increased by 8% to 188 in 89 different countries. Among them, 160 ombudsman institutions fulfil the criteria for voting membership in the IOI.

The year 2014 will be characterised by further assistance for regional developments regarding the establishment and improvement of ombudsman institutions with a focus on Latin America, as well as negotiations with international organisations such as the World Bank in order to establish a more intensive cooperation.

The IOI annual report 2012/2013 is available on the website in the IOI’s three official languages – English, French and Spanish.