News stories
News items on corruption issues and measures to promote transparency, accountability and integrity in the water sector from IRC's newsletter Source Weekly.
Corruption in the water sector: overlooked threat for development and sustainability
23 Jul 08
New report shows how corruption undermines the global response to the water crisis, climate change and food shortages.
South Africa: Democratic Alliance turns to Law to get water reports
22 Jul 08
The Democratic Alliance (DA) is using the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) to try to establish whether the death of 140 children in Ukhahlamba in Eastern Cape was directly related to contaminated water supplies.
Tanzania: Norconsult exits country to avoid corruption
08 Jul 08
Norconsultant will no longer bid for contracts managed by local authorities in Tanzania due to widespread corruption.
Participatory budgeting: towards better service delivery and transparency in Africa
25 Apr 08
Senior officials representing governments, local authorities and NGOs from 29 African countries gathered from 10-14 March 2008 in Durban, South Africa, for the first Africa Regional Seminar on Participatory Budgeting. Participatory budgeting (PB) is a system that gives the public a say and an eye on how municipal funds are spent.
Colombia: Agua Transparente programme launched and investment in five water plans
20 Mar 08
President Álvaro Uribe has launched the Agua Transparente [transparent water] programme, which aims to control the funding used in water projects and the implementation of initiatives, as well as supervising tenders related to water projects, in an effort to avoid corruption.
Philanthropy: Google.org launches “Inform and Empower to Improve Public Services” initiative
26 Feb 08
“Inform and Empower to Improve Public Services“ is one of the five new initiatives launched by Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Google. It aims to improve the flow of vital information to improve basic services for the poor in India and East Africa.
Grants: Water Integrity Network launches a Small Grants Fund
26 Feb 08
The Fund aims to stimulate and support local actions to fight corruption in the water sector, and thereby reduce poverty. It is targeted at Civil Society Organisation (CSO) members of the Water Integrity Network (WIN) working in developing and transition countries.
Nasiru Hamisu, retired engineer, Kano Water Board, Nigeria
20 Feb 08
“The Tamburawa water project was initiated more out of political considerations than solving Kano’s water problem. The intention was to patronise influential elements in society who were awarded the contract”.
India: initiatives to engage with citizens to improve public water and sanitation services
19 Feb 08
Engaging with citizens through methods such as Citizen Report Cards and Online Complaint Monitoring Systems results in service improvements, enhanced efficiency and greater public goodwill, a number of forward-looking Indian public service providers are discovering.
Governance: success story - La Guajira Water and Sanitation Project, Colombia
14 Feb 08
The World Banks's Department of Institutional Integrity (INT) is flagging the development of a risk assessment and mitigation plan for the Colombia La Guajira Water Project as one of its success stories in 2007.
