Addressing Corruption Through Information and Organised Networking (ACTION)

Filed under - Access to information

What’s at stake?

Access to information and a strong civil society are essential for good governance and public accountability. However, governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are not yet open about providing public information, and citizens equipped with poor information remain unequal partners in their relationship with government institutions, undermining a country’s democratic development.

What we’re doing about it

To address governance and accountability in the MENA region, we are working towards three objectives:

• Enhancing regional knowledge on access to information, through mapping and analysing the access-to-information environment.
• Building the capacity of civil society, youth activists and selected media practitioners to strategically use the right to access public information in their demands for accountability and in anti-corruption advocacy.
• Strengthening the links between civil society and youth activists on a regional level to increase their potential for activism and citizen engagement, through exploring the potential of social media.

We are carrying out activities towards these objectives in Egypt, Morocco, Palestine and Yemen.

Who’s involved

This project was made possible with the support of USAID. Implementation of this project is being carried out by our chapters in Morocco and Palestine, our national chapter-in-formation in Yemen, and a research partner organisation in Egypt, with the Transparency International MENA Programme at the secretariat providing support and coordination.

Our approach

Our approach to achieving our objectives is based on building our knowledge of the access-to-information environment and of essential stakeholders within these four countries, and using this knowledge to engage with key actors to address challenges in accessing information and in the broader fight against corruption.

Information contained in National Integrity System studies and new research into access to information in the four countries provide the background for this project; our analysis identified gaps in implementation of the right to access information and informs our engagement and advocacy strategies. A specific output of this project is the development of four national reports and one regional overview report on access to information.

Coupled with this, our chapters and secretariat have worked with a range of stakeholders to develop skills, build networks and make connections between diverse groups, exploring new ways of connecting greater numbers of people in anti-corruption work. This has included a number of regional and national workshops, events and trainings with a broad array of groups and individuals.

Timeline and results

• June 2011: Kick-off meeting in Amman, Jordan for project coordinators involved in the ACTION project.
• June 2012: Regional training on strategic advocacy in Cairo, Egypt. Selected media practitioners, youth activists and civil society representatives from Egypt, Morocco, Palestine and Yemen convened to discuss strategic advocacy and organised networking.
• October 2012: @ctivate! in Morocco, bringing together young bloggers, social media activists and youth leaders to discuss key topics surrounding the utilisation of social media and online tools in the fight against corruption.
• February 2013: @ctivate! 2.0 meeting of university-based groups in Cairo.
• September 2013: launch of reports on access to information

More…

Contact info

Christoph Wilcke, Director, Middle East and North Africa Programme
cwilcke@transparency.org

Arwa Hassan, Regional Outreach Manager
ahassan@transparency.org

Jackson Oldfield, Programme Officer for Research, Knowledge and Solutions
joldfield@transparency.org

Articles and reports

Egypt

• Transparency International: It belongs to you: Public information in Egypt (2013) AR
• UNESCO: Assessment of Media Development in Egypt (2013) AR
• Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE): Legal Study of Freedom of Thought in Egypt (2011) AR
• Centre for Democracy and Law: Statement on the Freedom of Expression and Information Provisions in the Draft Egyptian Constitution (2012) AR
• Centre for Democracy and Law: Comments on the Freedom of Expression and Information Clauses in the Draft Constitution (2012) AR
• Egyptian American Rule of Law Association: Freedom of Information Legislation: Best Practices for Egypt (2012) AR

Morocco

• Transparency Maroc: Ça vous appartient : l'information du public au Maroc (2013) AR | EN
• Transparency Maroc: Remarques concernant le projet de loi n° 31.13 relatif au Droit à l’Accès à l’Information (2013) AR
• Transparency Maroc: Priorités et idées directrices pour une loi sur l’accès à l’information au Maroc (2011) AR
• Transparency Maroc: Transparency News: Droit d'accès à l'information au Maroc (2012) AR
• Regional Dialogue on 'Advancing Access to Information in MNA: Supporting Coalitions & Networks': Access to Information in the Middle East and North Africa Region (2012) AR
• Bayane Al-Yaoume: Mourad Gartoumi. Flagrant embezzlement at Casablanca wholesale market (2010) AR

Palestine

• Coalition for Accountability and Integrity – AMAN and Transparency International: It belongs to you: Public information in Palestine (2013) AR | More info
• Coalition for Accountability and Integrity – AMAN: Opinion Poll (2013) AR
• Coalition for Accountability and Integrity – AMAN: Corruption Report, Palestine (2012) AR
• Coalition for Accountability and Integrity – AMAN: Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre Annual Report (2012) AR
• Coalition for Accountability and Integrity – AMAN: The Legislative Council’s Role in Fighting Corruption (2013) AR
• Transparency International, Anti-Corruption Helpdesk: 'Overview of corruption and anti-corruption in Palestine' (2012) AR

Yemen

• Yemeni Team for Transparency & Integrity: It belongs to you: Public information in Yemen (2013) AR
• Al Sharea  Diesel-smuggling coverage (2008) AR
• Chatham House: Yemen’s Economy: Oil, Imports and Elites (2011) AR
• U.S. AID: Yemen Corruption Assessment (2006)