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Crime, poverty and police corruption in developing countries
Jens Andvig & Odd-Helge Fjeldstad, 23 October 2008
Crime and the fear of being hit by crime and small-scale violence are key economic and social problems in most developing countries, not least felt strongly by the poor. Extensive corruption in the police, experienced or perceived, contributes seriously to the problem. How is police corruption linked…

Definição de Conceito: Comunidades Económicas Regionais e o Programa dos Ministros da Função Pública Africanos
October 2008
O presente documento tem por fim apresentar o conceito do enquadramento triangular de interacção estratégica entre as Comunidades Económicas Regionais (CERs), a União Africana (UA), à qual as CER servem de pilares regionais de governação, e o Programa Africano dos Ministros da Função Pública. Como exercício,…

Document d'Orientation: Les communautés économiques régionales et Le Programme des Ministres africains de la Fonction Publique
October 2008
Le présent document vise à conceptualiser un cadre triangulaire d'interaction stratégique entre les Communautés économiques régionales (CER), l'Union africaine (UA) pour laquelle les CER servent de piliers régionaux pour la gouvernance, et le programme des ministres africains de la Fonction publique.…

Concept note: Regional Economic Communities and the African Public Service Ministers' Programme
October 2008
This paper sets out to conceptualise a triangular framework of strategic interaction between the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the African Union (AU) for which the RECs serve as its regional pillars of governance, and the African Public Service Ministers’ Programme. As an exercise, this entails…

CCP-AU conference and workshop report
22 September 2008
The Centre for Citizens’ Participation in the African Union (CCP-AU) has completed the conference report that presents the proceedings, and a copy of the African CSO Communiqué of the “Sharm El Sheikh Declaration” which was a lobbying tool that was used at the 11th Ordinary African…

Millennium Development Goals at Midpoint: Where do we stand and where do we need to go?
François Bourguignon, Agnès Bénassy-Quéré, Stefan Dercon, Antonio Estache, Jan Willem Gunning, Ravi Kanbur, Stephan Klasen, Simon Maxwell, Jean-Philippe Platteau, Amedeo Spadaro, September 2008
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are the expression of the strong commitment to universal development and poverty eradication made by the International Community in the UN Millennium Declaration in September 2000. They offer a set of concrete targets that can be used to assess the integrity of…

Lobbyists, Governments and Public trust: Building a legislative framework for enhancing transparency and accountability in lobbying
August 2008
Lobbying is a worldwide practice that can provide policy makers with invaluable insight and data for more informed decision making. Concerns that negotiations carried out behind closed doors could override the interests of the whole community push lobbying to the political agenda in many societies. OECD…

National Advocacy Training Conference for the Coalition on the Right to Information in Ghana: "Building blocks for the realization of the Right to Information in Ghana"
19 June 2008
On June 19 – 20, 2008, the Coalition on the Right to Information in Ghana hosted a National Advocacy Training Conference on Freedom of Information under the theme, "Building Blocks for the Realization of the Right to Information in Ghana." The Conference was funded by the World Bank and supported by…

Going with the grain in African development? Family, ethnicity and religion as forces of accountability in Africa
Tim Kelsall, June 2008

Responding to the disappointing results of the Good Governance agenda, the Africa Power and Politics Programme is exploring the scope for approaches which attempt to ‘work with the grain’ of African societies. This paper explores what this might mean. It identifies a core set of beliefs and values…

Réaliser les objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement en Afrique: Recommandations du Groupe de pilotage pour la réalisation des objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement en Afrique
June 2008
Avec la réalisation, sur le continent africain, des objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement et des autres objectifs de développement convenus au plan international, on est en droit d’espérer que des millions de vies seront épargnées, que les femmes pourront prendre leur destin en mains, que la…

Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Africa: Recommendations of the MDG Africa Steering Group
June 2008
Achieving the Millennium Development Goals and other internationally agreed development goals in Africa holds the promise of saving millions of lives; empowering women; addressing the scourge of illiteracy, hunger and malnutrition; and ensuring that Africa’s children have access to high-quality education…

Participatory governance and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
June 2008
In evaluating the implementation of development targets such as the Millennium Development Goals, it is increasingly clear that success will require an approach which redefines the relationship between the government and civil society.

The politics of the budget process in Latin America: Policy lessons for other countries
May 2008
A recent research programme carried out by the IADB and DFID has investigated in depth the political economy of the budget process in ten Latin American countries. At a time when the political challenges of public sector reform have come to the fore, the findings from this research study offer valuable…

The material and political bases of lived poverty in Africa: Insights from the Afrobarometer
Robert Mattes, May 2008
The Afrobarometer has developed an experiential measure of lived poverty (how frequently people go without basic necessities during the course of a year) that measures a portion of the central core of the concept of poverty not captured by existing objective or subjective measures. Empirically, the measure…

10th Meeting of the Africa Partnership Forum
7 April 2008

10th Meeting of the Africa Partnership Forum, 7-8 April 2008, Tokyo, Japan.

10ème Réunion du Forum pour le Partenariat avec l'Afrique
7 April 2008

10ème Réunion du Forum pour le Partenariat avec l'Afrique, 7-8 avril 2008, Tokyo, Japon.

Between trust and scepticism: Public confidence in institutions
Ben Roberts , March 2008
Internationally, measures of institutional trust are seen as a ‘good thermometer of malaise’ in a country.

Strengthening Parliaments in Africa: Improving support

March 2008
This report sets out the findings of an inquiry by the Africa All Party Parliamentary Group. It explores the factors that hold African parliaments back and how the UK and others can contribute to addressing them.

Le Budget Participatif En Pratique
Bara GUEYE, March 2008
Le Sénégal a une longue expérience de la décentralisation car les premières communes ont été érigées vers la fin du 19^ème siècle. Mais la décentralisation en milieu rural est beaucoup plus récente, car elle a été lancée en 1972 avec la mise en place effective des communautés rurales. Depuis…

Uganda: Policy note on Social Accountability

March 2008
This Policy Note is based on a wider study that analyzed how various stakeholders in Ugandan society can better engage to improve social accountability in service delivery. The study conducted a rapid assessment of selected public officials in three districts (Bushenyi, Lira and Mukono), NGOs and other…

Conference on Social Accountability: Antananarivo, Madagascar
7 February 2008
The National Conference on Social Accountability (Conference sur la Redevabilité Sociale) was held from February 7^th-9^th, 2008, at the National Leadership Institute of Madagascar (NLIM), at Iavoloha, and was supported by three projects (PGDI, PGRM, PIC) as well as by WBI,…

Conferência Africana dos Ministros dos Serviços Públicos e Administração Promoção da Agenda Africana para os Estados Competentes
2008
Em 1994 os Ministros Africanos dos Serviços Públicos de todas as regiões da África, reuníram-se com o intuito de criar a Conferência dos Ministros Africanos responsáveis pelos Serviços Públicos/Civis. Com esta iniciativa, os ministros déram o passo único de estabelecer uma plataforma inter-estadual Africana…

Conférence des ministres africains de la fonction publique et de l’administration : Préparé par le département de la fonction publique et de l'administration (DPSA)
2008
En 1994, les ministres africains de la fonction publique de toutes les régions d’Afrique se sont réunis pour établir la Conférence des ministres africains de la fonction publique. Avec cette initiative, les ministres ont pris cette mesure unique d'établir une plateforme interétatique africaine pour le…

State reform and social accountability
Peter Houtzager, Anuradha Joshi and Adrian Gurza Lavelle, 2008
This IDS Bulletin focuses on the role of civil society actors in the design of sectoral reforms and the possibilities of social accountability resulting from this role. In addition to large institutional reforms in social assistance and health, the articles cover education reform in India as well. They…

Résultats du Partenariat mondial pour la réalisation des objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement
2008
Le Groupe de réflexion sur le retard pris dans la realisation des objectifs du Millenaire pour le développement a analyse la mesure dans laquelle les engagements reflétés dans ces objectifs et ratifies par les gouvernements lors des differentes manifestations internationales qui ont suivi le Sommet du…

Participatory governance and the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs)
2008
In evaluating the implementation of development targets such as the Millennium Development Goals, it is increasingly clear that success will require an approach which redefines the relationship between the government and civil society.

The African Conference of Ministers of Public Service and Administration: Advancing the African Agenda for Capable States
2008
In 1994, African ministers of public and civil service from all regions in Africa came together to establish the African Conference of Ministers of Public/Civil Service. With this initiative, the ministers took the unique step of establishing an African inter-state platform for transnational policy development…

Millennium Development Goals Monitoring: Challenges and opportunities for African countries
January 2008
The last few decades have witnessed a significant increase in demand for quality information from African national statistical systems (NSSs). A number of national, subregional, regional and international development initiatives have contributed to this increase in demand for quality statistics, including…

Delivering on the Global Partnership for achieving the Millennium Development Goals
2008
The MDG Gap Task Force has assessed the global commitments contained in the framework of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ratified by Governments at the various international events that followed the Millennium Summit. The United Nations Millennium Declaration emphasized that strengthened global…

Political rights versus public goods: uncovering the determinants of satisfaction with democracy in Africa
Leonard Wantchekon and Gwendolyn Taylor, December 2007
Somewhere between Aristotle and Churchill, global public opinion seemed to tend towards the idea that democracy is, in fact, the best form of government.

Perceived corruption, public opinion, and social influence in Senegal
Carrie Konold, December 2007
The “contextual” approach to the study of public opinion posits that the worlds in which individuals live, work, socialize, and worship provide opportunities for social interaction.

2007 Global Accountability Report
Robert Lloyd, Jeffrey Oatham and Michael Hammer, December 2007
The 2007 Global Accountability Report assesses thirty of the world's most powerful organisations from intergovernmental, non-governmental, and corporate sectors. The Report analyses each organisation's capabilities according to the four dimensions of accountability as defined by the Global Accountability…

Governance in Africa’s development: Progress, prospects and challenges

12 November 2007
Towards a new vision and dynamism

Africa is making significant progress in promoting good governance in all its dimensions. This progress is not limited to violent conflicts which are receding; but the continent’s economic growth rates in recent years have also surpassed the…

Public financial management and corruption

Lubin Doe, November 2007
Public Financial Management (PFM) ordinarily covers the management of government revenue, expenditure and cash. Corruption defined as the diversion of public resources for private use can affect any of these operations, at the level of the national and sub-national administrations. This paper focuses…

NGO Social accountability practitioner survey
11 October 2007
Research objectives: Gather evidence for the proposition that social accountability mechanisms depend for their effectiveness on communication structures and processes, and particularly the power of public opinion; Demonstrate how these tools could work better if more attention is paid to both the communication…

Building Parliamentary Capacity for Parliamentary Effectiveness: Identifying Best Practices in Africa
Lia Nijzink, Democratic Governance and Rights Unit, 3 October 2007
Are Parliaments in Africa…

institutions of countervailing power?
overseeing the development and implementation of pro-poor public policy?
pro-active in developing a democratic culture?
central agents in the promotion and realisation of human…

The Parliament: Contribution to and Challenges for Greater Finance Transparency and Accountability to Citizens - A case study of Uganda
Hon. Geoffrey Ekanya, 27 September 2007
According to Uganda’s Budget Speech Financial Year 2007/08, total resource envelope amount to Shs. 5,025 billion, the equivalent of US $ 3,358,000 (at a rate: 1US$ - Shs1500). Total budget and project support from outside Uganda would finance 38.7 percent (US$ 1,299,546) of the Budget for FY2007/08.…

The Media in Zambia: Contributions to and Challenges for Greater Public Finance Transparency and Accountability to Citizens
Fackson Banda, 27 September 2007
This paper starts by describing the regulatory influences that impinge upon media institutions. It does so by highlighting the general societal and specific intra-institutional factors that constrain journalistic performance. Secondly, it discusses the legal and institutional regime underpinning public…

Ibrahim Index of African Governance
September 2007
The Ibrahim Index of African Governance has been created in recognition of the need for a more objective and quantifiable method of measuring governance in the 48 countries of sub-Saharan Africa. The Ibrahim Index provides both a new definition of governance, as well as a comprehensive set of governance…

A vicious circle of corruption and mistrust in institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa: A micro-level analysis
Wonbin Cho; Matthew F. Kirwin, September 2007
Corruption is one of the most important constraints on economic growth and political development in Africa. Excessive state control of economic activities has turned the institutions of government into instruments to loot the economy to generate benefits for individuals and politically dominant groups.…

Aiding Transparency: What We Can Learn About China ExIm Bank’s Concessional Loans
Paul Hubbard, September 2007
Development experts interested in China's rapidly expanding development assistance program—particularly in Africa—have been frustrated by what appears to be a lack of transparency in the make up and amount of Chinese official development assistance. How much aid is Beijing giving, and to whom? In this…

Evaluation of Citizens' Voice and Accountability: Evaluation Design and Framework Development

August 2007
Enhancing citizen voice and accountability has increased in importance for donors since the 1990s. This paper reviews existing literature and the strategy and policy documents of seven DAC donors in order to contribute to the design of an evaluation framework to assess the effectiveness of these donors’…

UNRISD Conference news: Poverty Reduction and Policy Regimes

August 2007
Social policy is a central instrument to promote an inclusive and democratically anchored development process. In recent years, the general perception of the costs and benefits of social policy has changed, and policy makers are increasingly aware of the positive potential social policy entails. Nevertheless,…

Poverty Reduction Budget Support (PRBS) in Zambia Joint Annual Review 2007: Learning Assessment
Richard Gerster, Mwila Chikwekwe, 13 July 2007
Mandated jointly by the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) and the Cooperating Partners (CPs) committed to Poverty Reduction Budget Support (PRBS), the learning assessment (LA), integrated into the Joint Annual Review (JAR) 2007 process, pursued the overall objective of developing practical…

Congo: Consolidating the Peace

5 July 2007
Executive summary

Elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo were a milestone in the peace process but much remains to be done to consolidate the gains. A return to full-scale war is unlikely but violence in Bas-Congo and Kinshasa in early 2007 with over 400 people killed and renewed…

Governance Matters VI: Aggregate and Individual Governance Indicators - 1996–2006
Daniel Kaufmann, Aart Kraay, Massimo Mastruzzi, July 2007
This paper reports on the latest update of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) research project, covering 212 countries and territories and measuring six dimensions of governance between 1996 and 2006: Voice and Accountability, Political Stability and Absence of Violence, Government Effectiveness,…

The role of civil society organisations in promoting social justice and sound developmental policies in SADC
Prepared by Keith Muloongo; Supported By: Owen Shumba, Cephas Zinhume, Michael O’Donovan and Salvador Mondlane, 30 June 2007
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Accountability Project surveys in Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe were carried out by three researchers from each country. This report draws heavily from these country studies to provide a synthesis of the salient issues applicable to and obtaining…

Report from Africa: Population, health, environment and conflict
26 June 2007
Sustained Development, Democracy, and Peace in Africa

When the Norwegian Nobel Committee honored me with the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004, it intended to send a new and historic message to the world: to rethink peace and security. It wanted to challenge the world to discover the close linkage…

Ghana: Democracy and Political Participation
22 June 2007
Since civilian government was restored to Ghana in 1993, perhaps the country’s most notable achievement has been the progressive improvement of electoral management and the increasing acceptance of election results as fair by participants and observers alike. Oversight of governance by parliament and…

Financial Crime in Namibia: It’s Evidence, Economic Effects and Countering Mechanisms in Namibia
Presenter: Mr R. Ritter, 20 June 2007
Agenda

Setting the scene
Conventional response
In search of the moral economic man or economy
Conclusion and Recommendations

Conference on: New Directions in Development Assistance
Edited by Ngaire Woods, 11 June 2007

The aid system is at a crossroads. On one hand, rich countries have pledged to drastically increase development assistance to help poor countries reach the MDGs. On the other hand, numerous critics claim that aid often does more harm than good, and that the aid system needs to be drastically reformed.…

Presentations: Bi-Regional Conference on Social Protection and Poverty Reduction
7 June 2007
During 7-9 June 2007, the International Poverty Centre collaborated with the South African Government, UNDP South Africa and the UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa in holding a major Bi-Regional Conference in Cape Town on “Social Protection and Poverty Reduction”. The British Department for International…

Europeans and Development Aid
June 2007
Europe - the EU and the European Union Member States combined - is the biggest provider of development aid on the planet, responsible for 57% of total world aid in 2006. The role of the European Commission’s Directorate General for Development is two fold. It formulates the EU’s development cooperation…

African Civil Society Organizations and the Pan African Parliament Consultative Dialogue
7 May 2007
Report on building effective mechanisms for civil society engagement with Pan African and Regional Institutions.

Tanzania Accountability Conference - Report
3 May 2007
The National Audit Office Tanzania, collaborating with the Public Financial Management (PFM) Donor Group, under the Public Financial Management Reform Programme (PFMRP), and with the World Bank, organized the Tanzania Accountability Conference, held May 3-5, 2007, at the Blue Pearl Hotel, Ubungo Plaza…

Accountability in Poverty Reduction Strategies: The role of empowerment and participation
Walter Eberlei, May 2007
This paper is part of a research project analyzing the participation of stakeholders beyond the drafting process of Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRS) — i.e. in implementation, monitoring and revision. Starting with a brief explanation of `institutionalized participation' as the analytical framework…