USAID's Anti-Corruption Initiative in Africa

The linkage between corruption and poor governance is well established. This is particularly true in Africa, where fragile public institutions, weak civil society organizations, the lack of an independent judiciary, inadequately paid civil servants, and hiring and promotion systems that are not merit-based all interact to create a climate in which corruption can flourish. Likewise, limited access to communication technology and independent media in Africa, as well as a lack of modern tools for the management and dissemination of government data, means that citizens cannot hold government officials accountable for their actions and consequently, a culture of impunity leads to systemic corruption.

The Africa Bureau’s Anti-Corruption Initiative is designed to reduce corruption in sub-Saharan Africa and to lend specific support to recent efforts by African leaders to link good governance performance with sustainable development practices. To achieve these goals, the Initiative promotes:

• Public access to information;
• Civic participation in government action;
• Transparent and efficient government procedures;
• Effective government oversight institutions; and
• Public-private dialogue

The Anti-Corruption Initiative capitalizes on USAID’s comparative advantage within the development community. Experience has shown that anti-corruption reforms, not unlike other fundamental reforms, require broad partnerships within civil society and with government reformers to effectively advocate for, monitor, and sustain anti-corruption efforts. Thus, the Initiative will operate on three levels to build and expand USAID's current efforts to reduce corruption.

• Country Level Implementation: The Initiative will support five-year, cross-sectoral, Mission-designed action plans that reduce opportunities for corruption by increasing citizen participation and public access to information and transparency in key government processes, including procurement, budgeting, financial management and compliance with international protocols and obligations. The action plans will complement existing Mission strategies, as well as the new Africa Bureau initiatives in trade, education, and agriculture.
• Regional Level Implementation: The Initiative will support programs in the regional Missions to foster regional cooperation among governments and civil society networks committed to compliance with anti-corruption norms, standards, and protocols. Regional programs will also support media and research activities designed to bolster the environment for peer review among African nations.
• USAID/Washington Level Implementation: The Initiative will facilitate donor coordination, improve information sharing and the development of best practices, and strengthen the monitoring and evaluation of anti-corruption efforts in Africa.

The Anti-Corruption Initiative supports current “African grown” anti-corruption efforts, such as the good governance principles put forward under the New Partnership for Africa’s Development and the emergent anti-corruption agendas of various African institutions, including the African Union and the Southern Africa Development Community. The Initiative will build upon these efforts by leveraging limited donor resources, strengthening existing good governance programs, piloting innovative approaches to combating corruption, and contributing to an emerging set of best practices for improving transparency and accountability in Africa.

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