Enlisting Information Technology In The Fight Against Corruption the coalition against corruption Enlisting Information Technology In The Fight Against Corruption Nancy Boswell Transparency International Board of Directors President and CEO, Transparency International-USA World Bank e-Development Seminar Leveraging e-Government for Successful Anti-Corruption Programs January 17, 2007 www.transparency.org

Information Technology’s Promise Transparency = a key prerequisite to governmental integrity Transparency = access to information Technology solutions can increase access to information exponentially Technology should be a fundamental tool in the fight against corruption

Key Actors & Transparency Bank transparency – Meetings with officials, country strategies, procurement, budget support, INT data (across MDBs and with public), whistleblower/real time response Borrower transparency – Laws & regulations, budget, procurement, judicial decisions, asset disclosure, political finance Civil society transparency – media, private sector

Technology Can Contribute To . . Promoting Accountability Reducing Opportunities For Extortion Mitigating Corruption Risks Enhancing Research

Promoting Accountability Transparency permits citizen oversight & participation Media access to information enhances public scrutiny IT facilitates citizen capacity to communicate, organize networks & advocate reform

Reducing Opportunities For Extortion Publication of laws & regulations increases predictability IT transparency in procurement, licensing & revenue collection reduces discretion & contact with officials No Bribes

Mitigating Corruption Risks Databases enable expanded due diligence New software helps identify red flags & patterns of fraud IT permits real-time reporting

Enhancing Research IT enhances: Information sharing among researchers and practitioners Improved data collection (surveys) and analysis about corruption and ways of combating it Benchmarking progress and comparison to best practices

Caveats: IT has limits Not a substitute for political will Limited infrastructure – less than 20% world population access internet; less than 4% in Africa Capacity constraints – media and civil society need skills to process and utilize information Poor utilization – requires early integration in institutional reform & timely and accessible information False promise – reliance on false assumption that IT is panacea & automated systems are corruption-proof Expense – promising databases and software are accessible primarily to the richest market players

the global coalition against corruption Nancy Boswell Transparency International Board of Directors President and CEO, Transparency International-USA nboswell@transparency-usa.org World Bank e-Development Seminar Leveraging e-Government for Successful Anti-Corruption Programs January 17, 2007 www.transparency.org