Personnel Risk:
Very High
Score:
22/100
Leadership Behaviour
Q34
8/100
Do the Defence Ministry, Defence Minister, Chiefs of Defence, and Single Service Chiefs publicly commit, through, for example, speeches, media interviews, or political mandates, to anti-corruption and integrity measures?
View Question
Within the Ministry of the People’s Power for Defence (MPPD) and entities attached to the sector, commitment to integrity is expressed superficially. Senior officials…
Explore
No public commitments against corruption have been made by the minister of defence or by FANB officers of the General Staff. Indeed, following President…
Explore
In speeches, statements, and press releases made by officers among the leadership of the Strategic Operational Command of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces (CEOFANB),…
Explore
Q35
38/100
Are there effective measures in place for personnel found to have taken part in forms of bribery and corruption, and is there evidence that these measures are being carried out?
View Question
The legal instruments establishing the offences and misdemeanors for which National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) officers can be punished do not specifically define corruption…
Explore
The Prosecutor’s Office of Investigations has made announcements against FANB members for participation in cases of corruption [1], much as there is clear evidence…
Explore
Q36
0/100
Is whistleblowing encouraged by the government, and are whistle-blowers in military and defence ministries afforded adequate protection from reprisal for reporting evidence of corruption, in both law and practice?
View Question
In terms of denunciations, existing legislation is not explicitly aimed towards National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) officers. However, ordinary legislation includes the obligation for…
Explore
While there are formal mechanisms for denunciations, this process is not encouraged by the government; no anti-corruption policies or campaigns are currently being implemented.…
Explore
Lack of protection for the complainant and politicisation within the FANB and the justice system [1] have generated a high level of mistrust that…
Explore
Q37
0/100
Is special attention paid to the selection, time in post, and oversight of personnel in sensitive positions, including officials and personnel in defence procurement, contracting, financial management, and commercial management?
View Question
The Organic Law of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (LOFANB) provides the forms and procedures for the nomination and appointment of military officials to…
Explore
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. There is no recognition that some positions are more at risk of corruption. Procedures for appointments to positions…
Explore
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. The Ministry of the People’s Power for Defence (MPPD) does not have an agency directly responsible for the…
Explore
Payroll, Promotions, Appointments, Rewards
Q38
58/100
Is the number of civilian and military personnel accurately known and publicly available?
View Question
Official information available on the number of armed forces personnel and civil workers in the defence sector is vague and ambiguous. According to the…
Explore
Figures on the total number of officers who make up the FANB are published in an aggregated and imprecise manner by the MPPD [1].…
Explore
Across the different reports and documents consulted, no evidence was found of the existence of ghost soldiers in recent years, nor have organisations and…
Explore
Q39
13/100
Are pay rates and allowances for civilian and military personnel openly published?
View Question
No official information has been published on the salary scales of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) since 2018, and unofficial information is unreliable.…
Explore
Information on the true allowances of MPPD officers and civil employees is not publicly available. The ministry’s payment system is private access only and…
Explore
Q40
67/100
Do personnel receive the correct pay on time, and is the system of payment well-established, routine, and published?
View Question
Though there is no public access to information on payments by the Ministry of the People’s Power for Defence (MPPD), experts consulted in this…
Explore
According to sources provided, personnel always receive the correct pay on time [1]. However, there is a continual problem in that designated salaries quickly…
Explore
The payments system is not published, and is only privately accessible through the MPPD website [1, 2]. There is no accountability or scrutiny of…
Explore
Q41
8/100
Is there an established, independent, transparent, and objective appointment system for the selection of military personnel at middle and top management level?
View Question
The Organic Law of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (LOFANB) grants the president the power to appoint military officers to public administration agencies by…
Explore
Since the adoption of the new constitution in 1999, the promotion and appointment of military personnel has experienced no civil oversight, since the legislative’s…
Explore
Military appointments are published in the Official Gazette. However, given that there is no formal process for these appointments to management and public administration…
Explore
Q42
44/100
Are personnel promoted through an objective, meritocratic process? Such a process would include promotion boards outside of the command chain, strong formal appraisal processes, and independent oversight.
View Question
The Organic Law of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (LOFANB) establishes the hierarchies and different evaluation boards for the processes of promotion. The regulations…
Explore
The LOFANB considers posthumous promotion and promotion by vacancy to be exceptional cases, both of which are regulated [1]. In the event of promotion…
Explore
Resolutions announcing promotions are publicly published annually. However, these resolutions only publish the names, positions and credentials of officers and do not specify any…
Explore
Resolutions announcing promotions are published annually [1], but this information is limited. Although constituent parts of the FANB publish information about promotion schedules, this…
Explore
Conscription and Recruitment
Q43
NA/100
Where compulsory conscription occurs, is there a policy of not accepting bribes for avoiding conscription? Are there appropriate procedures in place to deal with such bribery, and are they applied?
View Question
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. There is no compulsory conscription in Venezuela; however, the Law on Registration and Enlistment for the Integral Defence…
Explore
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. According to the Law on Registration and Enlistment for the Integral Defence of the Nation, citizens who fail…
Explore
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. According to Venezuelan law, conscription is not compulsory [1]. In the sources consulted for this study, no information…
Explore
Q44
NEI/100
is there a policy of refusing bribes to gain preferred postings? Are there appropriate procedures in place to deal with such bribery, and are they applied?
View Question
This indicator is marked ‘Not Enough Information’. The structure and operation of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) establishes territorial divisions that must comprise…
Explore
There are no specific penalties for offering bribes to gain preferred posts. However, the Organic Code of Military Justice (COJM) [1] does specify the…
Explore
This indicator is marked ‘Not Applicable’. There are no regulations that directly sanction the receipt of bribes in exchange for access to preferred posts.…
Explore
Salary Chain
While the Organic Rules of the Ministry of the People’s Power for Defence (MPPD) state that the personnel directorate is responsible for the supervision…
Explore
Values and Standards
Q46
19/100
Is there a Code of Conduct for all military personnel that includes, but is not limited to, guidance with respect to bribery, gifts and hospitality, conflicts of interest, and post-separation activities? Is there evidence that breaches of the Code of Conduct are effectively addressed?
View Question
The conduct of officers of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) is primarily regulated by two legal instruments, the Military Discipline Law (LDM) and…
Explore
The FANB Ethics Code is available on the official websites of the FANB and the MPPD. Given the general levels of secrecy and lack…
Explore
Information on investigations on or penalties against FANB members for engaging in any of the conduct set out in the LDM and the COJM…
Explore
Evidence indicates high levels of educational content received by military personnel in what has been termed “Bolivarian thinking”, which focuses on doctrine governing military…
Explore
Q47
31/100
Is there a Code of Conduct for all civilian personnel that includes, but is not limited to, guidance with respect to bribery, gifts and hospitality, conflicts of interest, and post-separation activities? Is there evidence that breaches of the Code of Conduct are effectively addressed?
View Question
An Ethics Code for public servants sets out the principles govering the actions of civillian personnel and establishing duties and prohibitions, including the duty…
Explore
There is no information regarding whether the Ethics Code is effectively distributed to civilian personnel. It is, however, extremely easy to find on government…
Explore
Despite existing evidence, reports from different civil society organisations and the press, and even recognition on the part of some government entities of the…
Explore
The MPPD lists a series of documents with guidelines for the training process for civilian personnel; although the Ethics Code is included among these…
Explore
Q48
8/100
Does regular anti-corruption training take place for military and civilian personnel?
View Question
Anti-corruption training is superficial, mainly dealing with fiscal control and other administrative procedures. Anti-corruption training materials designed by the Office of the Comptroller General…
Explore
Training received by staff is carried out very sporadically under the framework of fiscal control courses. While CONGEFANB annually offers various training courses on…
Explore
Anti-corruption training is incorporated as part of the courses on public administration and fiscal control offered by CONGEFANB [1]. As such, this is not…
Explore
Q49
0/100
Is there a policy to make public outcomes of the prosecution of defence services personnel for corrupt activities, and is there evidence of effective prosecutions in recent years?
View Question
Although information from the judicial branch is public according to constitutional law and the Anti-corruption Law [1, 2], there is no policy requiring or…
Explore
There is no policy requiring the publication of information on judicial proceedings against state officials, civil or military, in either the military or civilian…
Explore
Corruption cases in the defence sector are not investigated and recent years have seen a sharp deterioration in military justice, which has ceased to…
Explore
Q50
17/100
Are there effective measures in place to discourage facilitation payments (which are illegal in almost all countries)?
View Question
Venezuelan legislation includes the duty of civil and military officials to neither accept nor request payments for their services, favors, or for refraining from…
Explore
The offence of receiving or requesting payments for public service functions is punishable under the Penal Code, and the receipt or request of service…
Explore
Payment for facilitation purposes is widespread in Venezuela, not only for institutional procedures controlled by the defence sector, but for all types of government…
Explore