As COVID-19 swept the globe, the Partnership for Transparency Fund (PTF) adjusted our operations to meet the moment and directly support civil society efforts to both assist and monitor emergency response programs, ensuring help reached those who needed it most. PTF’s COVID-19 response portfolio has included support for civil society…...
Newsletter Launch: Monitoring Moldova’s Public Procurement
In the Republic of Moldova, public procurement remains an area vulnerable to irregularities, fraud, and corruption. The large amount of money circulating in the public procurement system and the frequent interactions between the public and private sectors make public procurement extremely vulnerable and a priority area of concern for the…...
His Excellency Dr. Lazarus Chakwera, President of Malawi, Meets with CoST Team
As the Malawi Infrastructure Transparency and Accountability Project continues, the President of Malawi, His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has agreed to become the CoST Malawi Champion. CoST Champions play a vital role in the Infrastructure Transparency Initiative (CoST)’s work to engage with public officials in each of its target…...
The United Nations: its Relations with its Stakeholders
In 2003, then-United Nations (UN) Secretary General Kofi Annan decided it was a priority for the UN to rethink how it engages with civil society and other stakeholders. He established a high-level panel, under the chairmanship of Fernando Henrique Cardoso (former President of Brazil), to provide guidance. Titled “The Panel…...
The Sardar Sarovar Saga
Civil society campaigns have provided powerful impetus towards strengthening the “downwards accountability” of the World Bank. The most widely publicized of such actions has been the twenty-year international campaign about the Sardar Sarovar dam on India’s Narmada River. The story of the dam is particularly salutary in that it provoked a…...
Corruption Scandals ‘Destroyed’ Public Trust in Vaccine Distribution
High-level corruption scandals around the world have exposed the actions of health ministers and high-level officials who manipulated the system to ensure close contacts receive COVID-19 vaccines out of turn. Such dealings have “destroyed” public trust in the vaccine distribution process and could hinder steps taken to move past the…...
Civil Society Organizations Can Be a Powerful Tool in Getting People Vaccinated
As countries undertake the world’s largest vaccination drive, the innovation, expertise, and community reach of civil society organizations should be a key component. Given the unprecedented scale of this undertaking, as well as the numbers and logistics involved, this will be extremely challenging. A key but previously underutilized set of…...
How to Monitor Procurement During a State of Emergency: 4 Lessons Learned from Argentina
As COVID-19 swept the globe, the government of Argentina responded by imposing a state of emergency, sidestepping traditional procurement safeguards in the interest of speeding up emergency response. While it was important to provide relief as quickly as possible, the state of emergency also created a series of conditions which…...
