'What works and why in community-based anti-corruption programs'

More documents

Recommendations

Info

What works and why in community-based anti-corruption programsmembers, fostering partner and mentor opportunities. An example of this is the opportunity for CCACmembers to link up with media houses in order to access community service broadcasting and obtaincoverage of news worthy events.Moving outside the established networks of organisations and groups and engaging communities incampaigns is also a challenge. The CCAC works through its membership to reach communities,providing resources and materials (posters, booklets, petitions) to coalition members who engagedirectly with citizens. This is backed up by mass media campaigns to reinforce the Coalition’smessage.Key strengths● The CCAC can depend on coordinating organisations to service and facilitate information flowbetween the Coalition members.● The CCAC works on priority issues that are accepted by all members. This approach preventsthe organisation from ‘burning out’ the capacity or interest of members.● The CCAC primarily targets short action orientated campaigns to prevent or support specificissues.Key challenges● A gap between small, local community groups and larger, national advocacy groups can easilyform. Open communication, mutual trust between members and a collaborative effort that plays todifferent members’ strengths will help bridge the gap.● Corruption problems are systemic and the efforts of the CCAC will have limited impact if politicalwill for reform does not develop.Transparency International PNG_________________________________________________________________________________CASESTUDY 14Coalitions can be a microcosm of how supply-side and demand-led anti-corruption approaches can bebalanced. In the Governance Coalition in Bangladesh, links are made between micro-levelgovernance and human rights activities at a local village or precinct level, and national level advocacyand policy-reform programs.Box 3.14 Governance Coalition – BangladeshFirst established as a regional coalition in South West Bangladesh, the Governance Coalition hasgrown to become a national network of Bangladeshi NGOs, community groups and communityorganisations ‘promoting responsive governance and human rights’. Governance Coalition memberswork on a range of individual program priorities, but are unified by a common goal to improve localgovernance systems in Bangladesh.Governance Coalition is not a legally bound entity and works with minimum bureaucracy. Support isprovided through member organisations and an elected executive committee oversees coalitionactivities. Programs are framed in a human rights approach and encourage communities to not onlybe aware of their rights, but to claim their rights.One strategy is to increase communities’ involvement in local decision-making processes.Governance Coalition has supported the formation of Loak Morchas (voluntary peoples alliances) in66 local government areas. Loak Morchas bring together representatives from community groups,locally elected bodies, NGOs and professional associations. They also target the involvement ofyoung people and women. Loak Morchas act as mediators between local government, communitymembers and service delivery agencies. Through the Loak Morchas, citizens have increased theirinteraction with local government on constructive anti-corruption activities such as open budgetplanning exercises. With this grassroots activism engaging local authorities, Loak Morchas haveincreased the responsiveness of service delivery and seen an improvement in the quality of basicservices.- 32 -
What works and why in community-based anti-corruption programsGovernance Coalition also works to link micro level activities with macro level advocacy. GovernanceCoalition organises dialogues and roundtables national level policy makers, members of parliament,journalists, academics, national civil society organisations and other stakeholders to review, change orreform local government systems in Bangladesh.Key strengths● The Governance Coalition works with various stakeholders (local government representatives,government officials, NGOs, People’s Alliances and community) both at local level and national level.● Coalition members are involved in very local development programs and ensure the coalition isaddressing the communities’ interest● There is opportunity for communities to participate proactively to claim their rights● Governance Coalition has created opportunity for development organisations to be involved ingovernance, anti-corruption and human rights activitiesKey challenges● Volatile political situation and a lack of commitment of political leaders to reform limit the impactof a coalition such as the Governance Coalition.● Long-term support is required to build capacity amongst membersWave Foundation, Bangladesh_________________________________________________________________________________CASESTUDY 15Beyond the illegal dimensions of corruption, positions of morality may be a trigger point for oppositionfor those people able to resist a corrupt activity 6 . If a moral decision could prevent a corrupt actionoccurring, religious and ethical education should play a role in preventing corruption. This was thepremise for the formation of the Indonesian ‘Interfaith Anti-corruption Coalition’Box 3.15 An Interfaith Anti-corruption Coalition – IndonesiaIn 2004 the Interfaith Anticorruption Coalition in the Yogyakarta Special District was formed. TheCoalition brought together Moslem, Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist and Hindu representatives topromote anti-corruption values on the basis of ethical and moral positions.Members identified commonalities between their religions in order to establish a multi-faith moralposition against corruption. The Coalition’s action-plan to spread the message was multi-pronged.From the top, religious leaders were encouraged to offer moral guidance to give confidence tocommunities’ struggle against corruption. Materials for sermons and theological discussion weredeveloped, placing anticorruption values in the context of sacred texts, ethical positions and religiousteachings.At the grassroots level, young activists or campaigners from each faith group were selected andtrained to support community actions against corruption. Training focused on building networks of anticorruptioncampaigners within each religious community and organisation represented in the Coalition.These young people focused on support for their own communities, promoting anti-corruptionmessages and linking the community with secular anti-corruption groups. An ‘Interfaith Activists’Anticorruption Forum’ brought the young campaigners together, resulting in a ‘Coalition of YoungInterfaith Anticorruption Activists’ being formed as a sub-set of the overall Interfaith Coalition.Running parallel to the Coalition’s informal education and activities with religious leaders and activistswas the development of formal education resources for religion and ethics teachers. Anti-corruption6 In many situations communities, especially the poor and marginalised have no capacity to resist or fightcorruption regardless of any ethical or moral view of the transaction or activity. This program was targeting thosein the community who when faced with a potentially corrupt action would have the capacity to resist involvement.- 33 -
Page 1 and 2: TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL AUSTRALI
Page 4 and 5: What works and why in community-bas
Page 31: What works and why in community-bas

'What works and why in community-based anti-corruption programs'

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?