Table of Contents Prologue 1 Executive summary 3 1. Background 5 2. COVID-19 crisis in 2020 creating demands on public administration and civil service 9 3. Commitments and reforms 13 3.1. Background and evaluations of commitments to integrity in the civil service in Latin America and the Caribbean 15 3.1.1. Frameworks for reform from the standpoint of international stakeholders 16 3.1.2. International statutory commitments to integrity in the civil service 18 3.2. Principal reforms recommended by the MESICIC in connection with the Lima Commitment 20 3.2.1. Equal opportunities and transparency in access to government employment 20 3.2.2 Codes of conduct for integrity 21 3.3 The OECD’s vision on public integrity and civil service 23 4. Analysis of reforms and context of crisis in six countries 25 4.1 Functioning of the state in an emergency 27 4.1.1 An overview of integrity policies in the civil service during the pandemic 28 4.1.2 Continuity and change in reforms when the pandemic broke out 28 4.2 Civil service and integrity in the pandemic 30 4.3 Risks of corruption and abuse in an emergency were evident before they materialized 32 5. Challenges for the success of the reforms identified by experts 37 6. Recommendations 43 7. Bibliography 47