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Supporting security and development in the Americas

2 February 2015 in Accountability, Americas, Anti-corruption movement, Civil society, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Human rights, Impunity, People power, Politics and government, Poverty and development

Last week, US vice-president Joe Biden wrote an important article in the New York Times to explain his administration’s plans to channel resources to support security, governance and development in Central America. Biden wrote that in order to sustain economic growth and economic equality in a region plagued by violence, poverty and corruption, you need […]

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Middle East and North Africa: a region in turmoil

3 December 2014 in Access to information, Accountability, Africa and Middle East, Aid, Anti-corruption Conventions, Anti-corruption movement, Asset recovery, Civil society, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Human rights, Impunity, Oil and gas, People power, Politics and government, Poverty and development, Private sector, Whistleblowing

Three out of the bottom 10 countries on Transparency International’s 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index are from the Middle East and North Africa. Two of these three are in the midst of gruesome civil wars where lives are being lost daily. Iraq and Libya tell a story of a region in turmoil plagued with geopolitical insecurity, […]

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Challenging corruption in Afghanistan

1 December 2014 in Access to information, Accountability, Aid, Anti-corruption Conventions, Anti-corruption movement, Asia Pacific, Civil society, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Human rights, Measurement and Research, Miscellaneous, People power, Politics and government, Poverty and development, Private sector

Two years ago all the major donors to Afghanistan met in Tokyo to map a way forward for the war-torn country. Then president Hamid Karzai promised if the money kept coming in he would ensure it would not be lost to corruption. At the time Transparency International recommended a raft of measures aimed at curbing […]

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Under fire in Gaza: Anti-corruption activist Marwa Abu Odeh

8 August 2014 in Africa and Middle East, Anti-corruption movement, Defence and Security, Human rights, Politics and government

In Gaza, the month-long conflict – currently in a fragile ceasefire – has claimed close to 1,900 lives, nearly 400 of them children. About 485,000 people are internally displaced – including five members of our staff. One of them is Marwa Abu Odeh, a project coordinator at Transparency International Palestine’s office in Gaza. Marwa manages […]

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German-Greek arms deal corruption allegations stir renewed debate

6 June 2014 in Access to information, Accountability, Defence and Security, Europe and Central Asia, Politics and government, Private sector, Technology

The Self Propelled Howitzer “PzH 2000” of German Defense Company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) “sets a worldwide standard”, according to the company. Athens bought the howitzers a decade ago for €200 million, a deal which is now the centre of allegations about dubious flows of money in connection with two former German parliamentarians. The PzH 2000 […]

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Legacy of corruption: a challenge at the ballot box and beyond

4 April 2014 in Access to information, Accountability, Aid, Asia Pacific, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Human rights, Impunity, People power, Politics and government, Poverty and development

On 5 April 12 million Afghanis are expected to vote to select their next president. The leading candidates have expressed their fear of corruption on the day of the election: ballot stuffing, vote buying, impersonation and voter intimidation are likely to resurface as during the last presidential elections. An unfair election will tarnish the legitimacy […]

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Arms Deals in the Dark: secret contracts in the defence sector

31 March 2014 in Access to information, Anti-corruption movement, Defence and Security, Politics and government, Private sector

The past few months have seen major scandals in defence procurement involving The Colombian Defence Ministry, AgustaWestland and the UK government, Rolls-Royce and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, and Kongsberg Gruppen. The ghosts of corruption past are coming back to haunt these institutions. We’ve also seen major new contracts announced: BAE Systems and Saudi Arabia have agreed […]

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5 reasons South Africa Arms Deal sweeteners turned sour

6 March 2014 in Access to information, Accountability, Africa and Middle East, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Miscellaneous, Politics and government, Private sector

Ever since the South African government signed a US$4.8 billion deal to buy weapons from Swedish, British, German and South African defence companies in 1999, it has been hounded by allegations of corruption. The deal is still ongoing, and could still be cancelled. One of the justifications for the purchase was offset contracts – side […]

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Inside Ukraine’s protests

14 February 2014 in Accountability, Civil society, Cost of Corruption, Defence and Security, Europe and Central Asia, European Union, Human rights, Impunity, Measurement and Research, Oil and gas, People power, Politics and government, Young people

Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, has been racked by protests, the largest since the 2004 Orange Revolution when the country rose up in response to fraudulent presidential elections. Thousands of people have been occupying Kiev’s main square since last November and more recently, government buildings. The varying reports on the reasons for the violence and the range […]

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Corruption and security: uncovering the elephant in the room at the Munich Security Conference

7 February 2014 in Anti-corruption movement, Civil society, Defence and Security, Europe and Central Asia, European Union, Measurement and Research, Politics and government

Last weekend the City of Munich saw one of its most admired and, for some, most controversial events of the year – the Munich Security Conference. In the beautiful halls of the conference venue (Bayerischer Hof), heavily guarded by police and security personnel, an astonishing density of the world’s leaders and security and policy experts […]

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