Communication
OLAF's communication during 2023 remained focussed on providing visibility to OLAF's unique and vital role in defending European taxpayers' money from fraud, ensuring that EU funding reaches the people and projects it is intended for, and help keeping European citizens safe and healthy. OLAF communication about its work is key to strengthening European citizens' trust in the EU institutions and the entire EU project.
Throughout 2023, OLAF supported journalists in reporting on its investigative achievements, such as operations against smuggling of counterfeit, illicit and dangerous goods, food fraud, customs duties evasion, waste trafficking, procurement fraud and corruption, cross-border fraud schemes, and internal investigations in EU institutions and agencies.
Engagement on social media remained an essential tool to promote OLAF's work, especially to the public, stakeholders and journalists. Throughout the year, OLAF continued to be active on Twitter (now X), with a 13.6% increase of followers in 2023 (compared to 2022) and a total of 299 000 impressions (278 160 in 2022). OLAF is also present on LinkedIn with 11000 subscribers, a notable 80.3% increase compared to 2022 and a total of 395 947 impressions (150 202 in 2022).
Some examples that OLAF took to promote communication during 2023 include:
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March 2023
The thirty second meeting of the OLAF Anti-Fraud Communicators' Network (OAFCN), took place in Brussels focusing on preventing and fighting fraud through the power of communication.
March 2023 saw the publication of the results of ‘From the hives’ - the EU coordinated action against honey adulteration led by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), with the national authorities of 18 countries who are part of the EU Food Fraud Network, OLAF and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) . Adulterating honey with sugar is not harmful to health, but it hurts honest producers undercut by unfair competition by fraudsters using cheap, illicit ingredients. ‘From the hives’ was an action initiated and coordinated by DG SANTE that targeted imports of honey into the EU. OLAF investigated to help identify suspicious operators, performed on-the-spot checks with national authorities, and acquired and analysed computer and phone records. The JRC analysed samples collected at borders in their laboratories to detect adulteration. National authorities were, as always, on the front line of checks and investigations on the ground.
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May 2023
To promote its anti-fraud work to the general public, OLAF participated in the Europe Day event which took place in Brussels, on 6 May 2023. The Open-Day event attracted almost 10,000 visitors.
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June 2023
OLAF’s senior management presented the OLAF Report 2023 at a fully interactive hybrid press conference. The report was also presented to several stakeholders, such as representatives of the EU institutions and civil society.
September 2023
In September OLAF organised a seminar for the Anti-Fraud Coordination Services (AFCOS) of EU candidate and potential candidate countries. The seminar, which took place in Budva, Montenegro, consisted of presentations from OLAF staff and offered a chance to share experiences, information and develop relations.
October 2023
OLAF organised the annual Anti-Fraud Coordination Services (AFCOS) meeting which took place in Vilnius to discuss further steps in strengthening the fight against fraud and protecting the EU budget. The meeting brought together 51 representatives from the EU Member States. In the margin of the AFCOS meeting, the OLAF Director-General, met with representatives of the Lithuanian institutions responsible for protecting the financial interests of the EU - the Financial Crimes Investigation Service (FNTT), the Special Investigation Service, the General Prosecutor's Office, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Finance and others.