Fighting Corruption to Secure Sustained Impact
PRESS RELEASE
Fighting Corruption to Secure Sustained Impact
Asian Civil Society Experts Meet in Jaipur
November 28-December 2, 2011.
Washington DC , USA & Jaipur, India, November 28, 2011 --- “Civil society led initiatives are emerging as the driving force in the fight against corruption and its impact is now growing rapidly,” says Dr. Vinay Bhargava, Chief Technical Advisor and member of the Board of Directors of the Partnership for Transparency Fund (PTF). He adds, “Civil society leaders from eight countries are coming together in a unique meeting in Jaipur to exchange views and share knowledge on what really works in citizen against anti-corruption projects. We see Indian civil society playing good practice roles on this crucial front that are earning worldwide interests. ”
The meeting will bring representatives together from about 30 non-governmental organizations that have received grants and expert advice from PTF – an international NGO dedicated to assisting civil society across the developing world to fight corruption. The participating organizations come from India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Philippines, Mongolia. Additional civil society experts will be attending from Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan and Indonesia. Dr. Bhargava notes, “We see this meeting as providing an opportunity for peer review, sharing lessons learned and, as the key outcome, strengthening our effectiveness in the anti-corruption fight. What we all know is that even if laws are in place against corruption, their enforcement is usually modest at best. Effective civil society can monitor enforcement, it can mobilize public pressure, and it can initiate actions that promote transparency and accountability. We will discuss what works and under what conditions”
The meting in Jaipur is sponsored by PTF, the Public Affairs Centre, CUTS and Transparency International-India from November 28 to December 2, 2011.
“Fighting corruption is fundamental to establishing conditions for sound economic growth and poverty reduction,” says Daniel Ritchie, President of PTF. “It is certainly not a one-size fits all approach because the conditions that foster corruption are quite different throughout the world. Anti-corruption requires tailored engagement strategies for civil society and citizens in different settings. The Jaipur meeting is an important opportunity for people in Asia to share what they have learned as well as learn about activities that work elsewhere and about practices that have been less successful.”
“We expect that a key result of this meeting will be to strengthen the empowerment of citizens in their fight against corruption,” said Johannes Tonn, PTF’s Project Manager. “The participating organizations are working to help their communities demand good governance of public service delivery, find ways to expose corruption within their governments and public sectors, and advocate for legislative reforms. These will be major themes of the Jaipur workshop.”
Media: Colby Pacheco cpacheco@ptfund.org and Kathleen White kwhite@ptfund.org
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