Radu Nicolae is the president of the board of Syene Centre for Education and regional liaison Eastern Europe of the network of local research correspondents on corruption developed by DG Home. He graduated in Political Science (2003), holds a Master degree in Political Theory (2005) and a PhD degree in Political Science (2010). Between 2003 and 2017, he was the anti-corruption program manager of the Centre for Legal Resources, a distinguished Romanian CSO. He has been team leader, key expert. organised crime researcher or anti-corruption expert in over 30 projects implemented in Romania and at the European level.
He has extensive experience in working on projects aiming to improve the asset recovery process at the European level. In 2012-2013, he participated in project RECAST - Reuse of Confiscated Assets for Social Purposes: Towards common EU Standards (financed by ISEC Programme). In 2014-2016, he participated in Romania in drafting the legislation for an asset recovery agency and social reuse of confiscated assets (project “Social reuse of confiscated assets”, financed by EEA Grants / Norway Grants). In 2016-2018, he researched the existing situation regarding seizing and confiscation of criminal assets in the EU MS States in the project PAYBACK: Towards an EU Data Management System for Seized Assets (financed by DG Home). In 2020, he participated as a key expert in developing the “Study on freezing, confiscation and asset recovery in the EU Member States – what works and what does not work” (DG Home FSC). In 2021, he participated as a key expert in drafting the new Romanian Asset Recovery Strategy (service contract with National Agency for the Management of Seized Assets). He participated as national coordinator in the project “Good(s) Monitoring, Europe! that aims to develop a European strategy for the re-use of confiscated assets through Cohesion Policies.
He is ISO37001 certified lead auditor by PECB and he participated in developing the anti-corruption management systems of six central level public institutions and five private companies in Romania. He participated as an auditor in six peer review missions on the implementation of the Romanian National Anticorruption Strategy. Starting in 2011, he participates in the Civil Society Cooperation Platform of the Romanian National Anticorruption Strategy (organised by the Romanian Ministry of Justice).
In his carrier, Radu assisted the Romanian Government and law enforcement bodies in Romania in developing and implementing public policies, evaluations and impact assessments. In 2011, he worked with the General Inspectorate of the Romanian Police in reforming the rural police. In 2019, e worked with the Romanian Superior Council of Magistracy to survey the Romanian judiciary on transparency, rule of law and independence issues.
He participated in the evaluation team of the Centre for the Study of Democracy Bulgaria that conducted the ex-post evaluation of the Schengen part of the temporary Cash-flow and Schengen Facility 2007-2009 for Bulgaria and Romania.
In 2017, Radu Nicolae conducted research (including interviews in prisons with Trafficking in Human Beings - THB perpetrators) and elaborated the Romanian THB country report in the framework of FINOCA2 (Financing Organised Crime Activities – focus on Human Trafficking) project. He is also a member of the Trafficking in human beings Working Group (THB-WG) in Romania, an independent platform for discussion, research and advocacy to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings and migrants in Romania.
Between 2005 and 2016, he taught anti-corruption and public policy courses at the National School of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA). He also delivered anti-corruption training to civil servants, private companies’ employees, and CSO representatives. In 2010, Polirom Publishing House published his book Corupţia şi politicile anticorupţie / Corruption and anticorruption policies. He contributed with articles in academic volumes on organized crime, asset recovery and corruption. He also contributed to anti-corruption monitoring and implementation guides for civil servants and civil society. He attended numerous international conferences on crime prevention and law enforcement such as Cross-border Crime Colloquium.