Poverty and Corruption in Africa: Community Voices Break the Cycle

This 20-page report discusses the experiences and lessons learned from Transparency International’s (TI) Poverty and Corruption in Africa project, which focused on poor people’s role in improving service delivery in Ghana, Liberia, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Zambia and highlighted the link between corruption and poverty. The report outlines social accountability tools developed by the six TI country chapters to engage poor people and their governments in constructive dialogue. "From video advocacy to pacts binding officials and communities to agreed development targets, every activity was tailored to the national and local context. Communities focused on their most pressing issues - such as agricultural support, water supplies or free medicines. But the entire programme was underpinned by the common principles of community participation."

The report explains how corruption in Africa contributes to perpetuating poverty, and disproportionately affects the most vulnerable. The project sought to open dialogue, raise community voices, and build capacity to identify needs and demand government accountability. While approaches differed in communities and countries, the key strategies used were community dialogues, the creation of Development Pacts, and participatory video. Development Pacts are negotiated agreements in which "service providers, local governments and political or administrative public officials commit themselves to delivering on people’s development priorities with integrity." Participatory video was used to bring people together to explore issues, voice concerns, and tell their stories as a way of collectively identifying how to take action and as a tool to communicate their needs and ideas to decision-makers or other groups and communities.

The report includes individual country case studies of the experiences and approaches used. For example, in Ghana three communities used corruption risk mapping and participatory video to highlight problems with lack of safe water. In Liberia, Poverty Watch Councils received training in corruption issues, advocacy, and monitoring, and subsequently led Poverty Forum dialogues, which were also publicised through radio and drama groups. In Mozambique, community-based partner organisations and radio stations in Gaza Province received training, campaign materials and technical support, to raise awareness about the consequences of corruption and what people could do to prevent it. At public meetings, the communities identified priority issues - education, health and water - and activists and radio stations partnered to monitor progress and hold government accountable. And in Uganda and Zambia, Development Pacts were used as a way to hold officials accountable for public service delivery.

Through each of the country experiences, the report notes that communities' active role in planning and implementing activities was key. Local people are best suited as they know what issues are priorities, what strategies are likely to work, who in the community will likely be an anti-corruption champion, and they can provide assessments about the integrity of their local officials. As stated in the report, "The key to the project’s success was putting poor people at its centre and allowing them to take the driving seat. Its greatest legacy is that poor people realise they have the right and the power to speak up against corruption, and the space to make their voices heard."

Click here for more information about the project and links to the six Transparency International country chapters involved.

Click here to download the full report in English in PDF format.

Click here to download the full report in French in PDF format.