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Public sector CEOs, Victoria Police, managers and senior staff from local councils, and state government agencies from Horsham and surrounding areas attended.

The forum was opened by Sunil Bhalla, Chief Executive Officer, Horsham Rural City Council. Other presenters included IBAC's CEO Alistair Maclean, Deputy Ombudsman Megan Philpot, Chief Municipal Inspector David Wolf, Managing Director of GWM Water Mark Williams, and John Tomaino from the Victorian Auditor-General's Office.

IBAC Chief Executive Officer, Mr Alistair Maclean, said those working in the public sector in rural and regional areas can face different integrity challenges compared to their colleagues in metropolitan areas.

"In regional areas conflicts of interest are more likely to occur, simply because communities may be smaller and it's more likely that people know each other. While conflicts of interest have been a recurring theme in IBAC's investigations, they are not necessarily an indicator of corruption."

"When a conflict of interest is not properly identified, declared or managed properly, that's when corruption can occur," Mr Maclean said.

Mr Maclean said effective management of conflicts of interest was just one of the topics canvassed at the forum.

The forum is part of IBAC's ongoing program to engage with public sector employees in regional areas.

"Today's forum was a valuable opportunity for public sector leaders in the Wimmera region to come together and share insights and practical approaches on how to identify possible red flags and risks of corruption, and how to address these in their organisations," Mr Maclean said.

"Corruption is not a victimless crime, it hurts all Victorians. It wastes our taxes and rates that should be used to operate and maintain Victoria's schools, hospitals, roads and other vital public services and projects," Mr Maclean said.

"Corruption not only robs the community of vital frontline public services but also erodes the community’s confidence and trust in the public sector. It's up to all of us to speak up when something is not right, and report any suspected wrongdoing," he said.

Mr Maclean said anyone with credible information about public sector corruption is encouraged to report it to IBAC via the website www.ibac.vic.gov.au/report or by calling 1300 735 135.

IBAC, the State's Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission, is responsible for exposing and preventing public sector corruption and police misconduct.

Media contact: media@ibac.vic.gov.au or 0427 480 840

Media outlets please note: for legal and operations reasons, IBAC is unable to comment on current investigations.