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Back to the future: the big and bad e-government 1.0 attention void

Imagine you are an NGO lobbying your government to clean up one of the most notorious areas for corruption: public procurement. In response the government declares that a centrepiece of its anti-corruption strategy will be an electronic procurement system that will make corrupt interference all but impossible. What do you do? Do you applaud this move?  How about […]

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Young activists: the future of social media in the Arab world

The onset of the Arab uprisings demonstrated the power of social media and its effect of people protesting for their rights. Youth were an integral part of the revolutions, with many grassroots initiatives springing up online in response to years of endemic corruption. In the search for more ways to use technology to fight corruption, […]

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A voice against corruption in water and sanitation – community video in India

In September 2011, in the slum of Mumbai, the heavy monsoon rains were filling up sewage pipes to breakage point. The dirty waste from the burst pipes flooded the streets at an accelerated pace because of the continuous and strong rain pour. The residents of the slum had no choice but to walk those filthy […]

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Image of checkmyschool.org website

New remedy for parents unhappy with children’s schools

Filipino parents unhappy with the way their children’s schools are being run now have a ready remedy: sending an email or text to the website checkmyschool.org. The site has a scrolling list of user complaints, ranging from a computer shortage in an elementary school to allegations – supported by a photo – that another institution […]

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The dawn of the virtual Big Brother?

Expanding the International Telecommunications Union’s mandate to cover the internet would endanger the collective power of the World Wide Web. This December, the way the world currently uses the internet could drastically change – potentially for the worst. Global regulations – creating a virtual “Big Brother” – are proposed that could impact how much freedom […]

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Fighting corruption with bumper stickers and public toilets: ambient accountability

Anti-corruption activists try to make those in power answerable to people. We call this accountability. NGOs try to make “accountability” happen by training citizens to audit local government or monitor elections, often using social media to report and collaborate. But when the initial enthusiasm for what are often called social accountability instruments fails or issues […]

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Hackers fighting Corruption?

What comes to your mind when you hear the word hacker? Most of us think hackers are hacking computer security systems to steal important and confidential information. It is only partially true, since there are hackers who contribute real solutions to social problems such as corruption. When we asked participants of the global Transparency International […]

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Open Government Partnership: From Commitment to Action…?

Under the Open Government Partnership  governments commit to transparency, and using technology to fight corruption. The Partnership creates a potentially unique opportunity for civil society to push for government accountability and empower citizens in the fight against corruption. Gathered at a scenic Adriatic coast in Dubrovnik, European civil society organisations were supposed to discuss their […]

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Madagascar: corruption fight goes on air, not online

Two weeks ago, Transparency International held a 24-hour Hackathon where technology specialists helped design websites and other apps that would help us fight corruption. But with only 13% of Africans using the internet, it’s a good time to remember a more traditional technology that is still crucial to getting people involved; the radio. Earlier this […]

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Hacking against corruption

30 people, some of them friends, some others strangers, put together their skills in one place for one cause: beating corruption while having fun programming, coding, testing and, when things did not work out, starting all over again. The goal was making one good idea  become reality by the end of 24 hours. In Bogotá, […]

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