The State of Nuevo León is the third-largest economy in Mexico, contributing 7.3% of national GDP in 2016. However, as shown in surveys from institutions such as the National Institute for Statistics and Geography (INEGI) and from civil society, there is a high public perception of corruption, which is considered very frequent both at the state (53-54%) and the municipal levels (46%-49%). Nuevo León is therefore seeking to build a sustainable and resilient public integrity system. To this end, the state created a Local Anti-corruption System in 2017 (Sistema Estatal Anticorrupción para el Estado de Nuevo León, or SEANL) to implement, at the local level, Mexico’s National Anti-corruption System (Sistema Nacional Anticorrupción, or SNAC).

The Local Anti-corruption System of Nuevo León (Sistema Estatal Anticorrupción para el Estado de Nuevo León, or SEANL), established in 2017, was created to implement the national anti-corruption reform launched in 2015 to ensure co-ordination and coherence among anti-corruption and integrity policies, institutions and initiatives at all levels of government in Mexico. This review provides an assessment of Nuevo León’s public integrity system, focusing on three main areas: building a strategic public integrity system, enhancing the culture of integrity in the public sector and improving internal control and risk management.

This chapter considers the framework of Nuevo León’s public integrity system and how well it is aligned with the first pillar of the OECD Recommendation of the Council on Public Integrity on building a coherent and comprehensive public integrity system. Nuevo León’s Local Anti-corruption System offers an invaluable opportunity to encourage coherence and consistency among the different policies, measures and initiatives of the relevant actors, both in Nuevo León, and in the country as a whole. The chapter notes that Nuevo León has based its integrity system on the model established at the federal level, but also suggests that further efforts are needed to engage all relevant actors in the state – including municipalities. In addition, at the level of government entities, integrity policies and practices need to be implemented and mainstreamed. Furthermore, political and managerial leadership is needed to model public integrity and reduce corruption by ensuring sustained support for the system and its mechanisms for citizen participation.

A strategic approach to integrity, based on evidence and on addressing at-risk areas is an essential element to develop a comprehensive and effective integrity system. This chapter assesses the mechanisms for monitoring, evaluating and reviewing Nuevo León’s strategic efforts to prevent corruption, as laid down in its strategic and development plans. This chapter describes the comprehensive and participatory work of the Nuevo León Strategic Planning Council, which guides the state’s broad strategic development. It provides recommendations for improving the integrity and anti-corruption strategy, for example by clearly defining objectives and identifying additional indicators. Furthermore, it addresses the strategic role that the Nuevo León Anti-corruption System (Sistema Estatal Anticorrupción para el Estado de Nuevo León, or SEANL) can play in supporting the state integrity strategy as it develops and monitors its integrity policies.

This chapter identifies the strengths and weaknesses of Nuevo León’s current integrity framework, focusing on public ethics and management of conflicts of interest within its public administration and providing guidelines for strengthening its institutional and normative framework. The chapter finds that the current Ethics Code and integrity rules could be revisited, moving to a more balanced approach based on evidence. Additional guidelines could be adopted to assist public officials in dealing with ethical dilemmas and conflicts of interest and to identify areas of risk in public sector activities. It is also recommended that Nuevo León consider adopting a more strategic approach toward using the declarations requirement as a way of implementing integrity policies and practices. Finally, this Chapter underlines how strengthening the recruitment process and human resources management practices can help promote integrity throughout the public administration.

This chapter considers the mechanisms put in place by Nuevo León to provide public officials advice and guidance when they are confronted with doubts and dilemmas that arise over issues of integrity. It also analyses the dedicated whistle-blowing law that Nuevo León adopted in 2013 to encourage reports of corrupt conduct committed by public officials. This chapter provides a set of recommendations for creating an open organisational culture, as well as improving the impact and effectiveness of the existing legal framework. It recommends that senior leadership play a more central role in stimulating dialogue and communication on integrity-related issues. Furthermore, it calls on Nuevo León to reinforce some aspects of its legal framework, including providing meaningful incentives, and ensuring effective protection in case of reprisals.

This chapter analyses whether Nuevo León’s integrity reforms are effectively engaging citizens, civil society and the private sector in recognising their shared responsibility for public integrity. It identifies additional strategies for raising awareness and increasing knowledge about the social, economic and political benefits of public integrity for society. This chapter also assesses the initiatives that have been launched in the state to instil integrity norms and values in children and youth. It provides recommendations for mainstreaming the existing programmes into the main curriculum and ensuring that teachers have the skills to provide education on integrity in the classroom.

This chapter assesses Nuevo León’s internal control and risk management framework against international models and the OECD Recommendation of the Council on Public Integrity. It provides an overview of the strengths and weaknesses of the internal control and risk management framework in Nuevo León and presents proposals for action indicating how it could be reinforced to align with the Recommendation and good OECD country practices. The proposals include implementing a strategic risk management system, giving operational management ownership over the management of risk, establishing coherent internal control mechanisms and strengthening the effectiveness of the internal audit function.

This chapter presents an action plan for the implementation of the OECD recommendations in the areas covered by the Integrity Review of Nuevo León, namely: institutional arrangements, a strategic approach to public integrity, a culture of integrity, an open organisational culture, a whole-of-society approach to integrity, internal control and risk management. This chapter provides a list of the main activities, actions and steps to be taken for the implementation of each recommendation in the Review, and suggests which government entities are best suited to carrying them out.