I agree about corruption being a scourge in many countries, but in your search for social enterprises that effectively combat it, haven’t you overlooked a simple one? One with a proven track record of impact and sustainability: independent media. There are countless examples of independent journalism exposing corruption and holding businesses and officials to account. You say that journalism can play a part but don’t explore how it can be helped to flourish. Let’s provide more financing and support to independent media in countries where corruption is pervasive to help them develop as businesses, able to maintain their editorial independence by deepening their financial independence.
A very interesting contribution providing much food for thought! Some of your ideas are particularly appealing, given the degree to which publicly funded anti-corruption initiatives are ineffective because they are under-resourced or co-opted by corrupt elites. However, one must also guard against the danger of overdoing the ‘privatisation’ of anti-corruption services and recognise that constraints on ability to pay will require substantial levels of public funding in many poorer developing countries. Two other observations/questions: Firstly, micro-insurance/legal schemes can certainly be useful, but would they work in countries where the entire justice system suffers from endemic corruption and other inefficiencies? Secondly (with reference to the 2009 TI Global Corruption Barometer finding that is cited), I wonder whether this extensive willingness on the part of the public to pay a premium for corruption-free goods would extend to acceptance of the need for higher levels of state funding for political parties in countries where private/corporate funding has reached levels that have greatly increased corruption risks that undermine democracy. Would people be prepared to pay a ‘premium’ to protect a vital public good like democracy?!
COMMENTS
BY Peter Whitehead
ON February 6, 2015 03:51 AM
I agree about corruption being a scourge in many countries, but in your search for social enterprises that effectively combat it, haven’t you overlooked a simple one? One with a proven track record of impact and sustainability: independent media. There are countless examples of independent journalism exposing corruption and holding businesses and officials to account. You say that journalism can play a part but don’t explore how it can be helped to flourish. Let’s provide more financing and support to independent media in countries where corruption is pervasive to help them develop as businesses, able to maintain their editorial independence by deepening their financial independence.
BY Chandu Krishnan
ON April 1, 2015 08:31 AM
A very interesting contribution providing much food for thought! Some of your ideas are particularly appealing, given the degree to which publicly funded anti-corruption initiatives are ineffective because they are under-resourced or co-opted by corrupt elites. However, one must also guard against the danger of overdoing the ‘privatisation’ of anti-corruption services and recognise that constraints on ability to pay will require substantial levels of public funding in many poorer developing countries. Two other observations/questions: Firstly, micro-insurance/legal schemes can certainly be useful, but would they work in countries where the entire justice system suffers from endemic corruption and other inefficiencies? Secondly (with reference to the 2009 TI Global Corruption Barometer finding that is cited), I wonder whether this extensive willingness on the part of the public to pay a premium for corruption-free goods would extend to acceptance of the need for higher levels of state funding for political parties in countries where private/corporate funding has reached levels that have greatly increased corruption risks that undermine democracy. Would people be prepared to pay a ‘premium’ to protect a vital public good like democracy?!