accountability
Despite controversies about data security, the number of Facebook users is growing daily. Particularly in the South Facebook is not a domaine reserved for youth. We are convinced that social media can play an important role in advocay. Therefore we have created an OpenAid site on Facebook and a "cause" promoting aid transparency and social accountability. Read more »
The reform of the Swedish Development Cooperation has a new name - Open aid! We very happy to share our NGO's name with SIDA and we welcome the initiative of Gunilla Carlsson to promote accountability and cooperation in Swedish aid. According to an official statement of the Swedish Government transparency will allow everybody to monitor Swedish Development cooperation and to hold the main stakeholders to account. But the merits of transparency go beyond accountability. Transparency will help SIDA to tap into the knowledge and creativity of a wide variety of stakeholders in the Swedish society.
When information which properly belongs to the public is systematically withheld by those in power, the people soon become ignorant of their own affairs, distrustful of those who manage them, and - eventually - incapable of determining their own destinies. Although in many countries recognize the right of citizens to access and use information, this right is often not implemented. Access to information is the basis for transparency and accountability both in government activities and in donor projects. Tanzania is one example, where access to information and accountability leaves much room for improvement.
Participation has for a long time been a popular buzz word in development cooperation. In reality however citizen involvement often seems to be considered a "nice to have". A recent report by the British NGO INVOLVE approaches the issue of participation from a different angle and argues the complexity of most social problems in development cooperation and in social policy generally cannot be adequately addressed by planning of some experts. Read more »
Global Integrity is an independent, non-profit organization tracking governance and corruption trends around the world. Global Integrity uses local teams of researchers and journalists to monitor openness and accountability.
OpenAid is about transparency, accountability and the use of 2.0 technology for participation in development. There are examples in other areas of politics, where new media is used to foster accountability. In several countries internet sites exist to follow up individual parliamentary representatives. Some of these sites focus on regular income, pensions and additional income through advisory services or posts. Other initiatives target the employment of time of elected officials. Still other sites publish the positions of individual representatives in parliamentary discussions and in votes. The German site Abgeordnetenwatch is covering both financial aspects and voting behaviour. Read more »
Whistleblowing is one of several aspects of what our initiative Public Online Monitoring is about. Read more »
The Global Transparency Initiative (GTI) is a network of civil society organisations monitoring the transparency of the Regional Development Banks, the World Bank, the International Monitary Fund and the European Investment Bank. Read more »