|
The recent hike in international
donor funds and domestic budgets of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts in
Africa is finally beginning to match up with
awareness and understanding of the pandemic’s impact on the continent. However,
scrutiny of the use of these funds has mostly been neglected amongst the
plethora of the issues in dealing with crisis.
In 2006, the ISS Corruption &
Governance Programme in collaboration with Transparency International-Zimbabwe
(TI-Z) conducted a groundbreaking study in Zimbabwe
and South Africa.
The effort of the commissioned researchers based in each country, was to
unpack, state accountability mechanisms in place for national allocations and
to highlight instances of and vulnerabilities for corruption in the prevention
and treatment efforts.
Based on the experience and
findings of the report (due to be launched in August 2007), the ISS takes the
work forward this year and looks at three other countries in Africa: Senegal, Uganda
and Kenya.
Once again, partner organisations and commissioned researchers in each country
have been identified and will assist with the implementation of the project.
The ‘governance
and accountability’ approach has remained as government’s
in the researched countries are viewed as being required to deliver on their
HIV/AIDS mandate and may be held justifiably accountable to citizens/public.
This research thus scrutinises the transparency, openness, fairness and
effectiveness in delivery of the mandate. Specifically, it will interrogate
HIV/AIDS rhetoric, policy and implementation of policy vis-à-vis corruption.
The performance of the function of interrogation and scrutiny serves as a
watchdog role on behalf of the public/citizens, especially those infected,
affected and disempowered.
The
objectives that were conceived by TI-Z thus largely remain. They include:
The
broad aims of the research project (as determined by TI-Z) are:
- To strengthen understanding of the nature and forms
of corruption in the region
- To play a crucial role through advocacy and
lobbying in the formulation of policies discouraging and penalizing
unethical corrupt conduct in the private and public sectors and in the
public in general
- To enhance the demand of transparency and
accountability in public affairs and in international business
transactions
The
specific objectives (as determined by TI-Z) are:
- To ascertain the prevalence of corruption in
institutions administering HIV/AIDS funds in the region.
- To establish the nature and extent of corruption in
these institutions
- To identify causes of the various forms of
corruption
- To establish best practices and monitoring
mechanisms and recommend these to policy makers
- To advocate for an information campaign through the
media in the countries
Project
Head: Robyn Pharoah (commissioned)
|
