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Measuring corruption: Government’s planned measurement tool laudable
Article Summary
Source:Dr Richard Leakey
Date: 7/15/2010
Nairobi, Tuesday May 25, 2010 – Transparency International-Kenya lauds the Kenyan government’s intended move to launch a system to constantly monitor corruption within itself and publicise the institutions where the vice is rampant. The plan announced by the Prime Minister last month, will be critical in curbing the incidence of corruption within individual ministries and state institutions.
Despite the numerous public sector reform initiatives and state-run anti-corruption agencies launched by the government since 2003, the incidence of corruption in public institutions remains high while Kenya continues to rank low in various global corruption perception indices. The 2009 East African Bribery Index – which examined the level of corruption in public institutions in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania- ranked Kenya as the most corrupt country in the region. Transparency International’s 2009 Corruption Perception Index, also returned a poor verdict on Kenya’s fight against corruption ranking it at position 146 out of 180 countries, in the company of endemically corrupt countries like Zimbabwe and Russia.
The government has responded to poor performances in corruption surveys in a verbal fashion, by either reiterating its commitment to the war against corruption or disputing the results. Its intention to now take the bull by the horns, and not wait for international agencies and NGOs like Transparency International to give it a report on corruption in the public service is a proactive move that should yield a positive outcome.
It is imperative that this internal monitoring exercise creates more understanding on the drivers of corruption and the blockages to reform; assesses the functioning of anti-corruption mechanisms and leads to the development of anti-corruption strategies and coordinated policies.
In measuring corruption within its institutions, the government should:
• Ensure quality, integrity, trust, credibility, ownership and usability of the findings
• Place strong emphasis on the level of expertise and technical capacity of officers involved, and methodology of accessing data
• Integrate ethical issues in performance contracting and reviews of public institutions and individual officers.
Even as the government forges ahead with plans to design and implement this tool, TI-Kenya holds the view that external assessments on the government’s anti-corruption efforts remain critical in complementing governmental efforts, and offering independent evaluations on the progress made and gaps to be filled. In this regard, TI-Kenya’s annual East African Bribery Index that now covers Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi is key in providing public institutions with diagnostic tools to ensure improved performance and enhance service delivery to the citizen’s of the East African Community. The National Integrity Systems Study that examines the key institutions, laws and practices contributing to integrity, transparency and accountability in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania also remains relevant in strengthening institutions of governance. TI-Kenya has also collaborated with several government agencies in institutional integrity studies aimed at strengthening their capacities to deliver public services efficiently, equitably and cost effectively as mandated, and we hope to continue on this course.
Article 13 of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) promotes civil society participation in anti-corruption efforts. TI-Kenya thus hopes that the government will involve non-state actors in the development and implementation of this corruption measurement tool.
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