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Fuad Alaskerov, Head of the Department for Work with Law-Enforcement Bodies of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan, member of the committee on fight against corruption gave an interview to AzerTAc which is presented below

- The organization Transparency International has published the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2011. How would you regard this index?
- Measurement of the level of corruption on the countries is a constantly discussed question. Neither the international structures, nor the academic institutes yet have worked out common methodology in this area. Various organizations, applying different methodology, make indexes. Transparency International as one of the international non-governmental organizations functioning in the field of fight against corruption uses methodology inherent to it. As a result, at times there are contradictions between the reports prepared by various structures.
The relation to estimation is therefore ambiguous. The Transparency International itself calls into question this index. There are discussions about change of this methodology and even refusal of it.
The Transparency International itself doesn't conduct any researches for drawing up this index, and bases on carrying out of average index from the data received from various sources. The organization refers not to real situation in the country, and it bases more on reasoning, perceptions and representations. Strange is that Transparency International, preparing the index refers to other organizations, and these organizations, preparing the report, refer to index of Transparency International. And as a result it leads to infinite constant circulation and repeated processing of the same data. The sources used for drawing up the index on Azerbaijan, are possibly to be divided on two groups: the organizations functioning in economic and political spheres. In sources to economic sphere the indicators of Azerbaijan are high. These indicators base on objective figures. And the estimations on political organizations, don't exclude the subjective approach in the relation to the countries and cases of favoritism in the relation to some countries. From this point of view, indicators on the countries in some cases don't reflect the reality.

At the same time, the data for preparation of the index of Azerbaijan covers the period from December 2009 till September 2010 and doesn't reflect all data of that period at all. Even the national branch of Transparency International admits it.

The head of the Baku office of Transparency International notes that "as the reasoning is always made with some delay from real life, it is impossible to consider this index sufficient for a full estimation in connection with all works carried out in the country".
Therefore, the global general approach means that the Transparency International`s reports can't be perceived as true sources absolutely and should be perceived as relative.

- And how would you estimate the index of this year on Azerbaijan?
- In Transparency International's index Azerbaijan as in the last year has garnered 2,4 points. The basic indicator in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is the points garnered by the states. The position of Azerbaijan in comparison with last year remained invariable. And by including new states in the index of this year the place of Azerbaijan has changed.
Therefore, when you look from the index prism, points of Azerbaijan are steady and there is no backlog at all. However, some media speculate with this position, and indicators are presented to the public in the distorted form.

- How you consider, 2,4 points in relation to our country reflect the reality?
- Unequivocally, it doesn't. Fight against corruption in our country is conducted irrespective of such reports. Since 2004 in this area regular judicial-legal reforms have been carried out and undertaken series of measures. In early 2011, President of the Azerbaijan Republic Ilham Aliyev for the purpose of ensuring sustainable development declared strengthening of fight against corruption as the state policy priority.
In the frame of strategy of new socio-economic development from the beginning of year there have been taken a number of important legislative and practical measures aiming at fight against corruption and ensuring transparency of the activity of state structures.

So, in state structures it were simplified office procedures, and were applied methods of modern management, improved were the mechanisms of application of "one window" principle, electronic services and non-cash payments. Along with preventive measures in the field of fight against corruption, were realized important works in improvement of quality of criminal prosecution. It was established close cooperation and effective dialogue with institutes of civil society. And there is already positive influence of the above-mentioned measures.

In preparation of these measures, naturally, it is taken into account the international experience, as well as the responses and recommendations of the specialized international organizations. We always with keenness concern the opinions on our country, as for those who prepares reports, such indexes are only figures and indicators. But, for us these are real life, the real work. Therefore, when opinions on development of our country are biased, it afflicts us.
And finally, I would like to underline once again that fight against corruption and ensuring transparency are one of the priorities of our state policy, our development. In Azerbaijan, in fight against corruption there is a strong political will, and the reforms in this sphere will systematically be continued and henceforth.