Making Anti-Corruption Approaches Work for the Poor

Author: Janelle Plummer

Year of publication: 2007

From the introduction:

Anti-corruption activity has intensified in recent years but noticeable in its absence has been specific discussion about how this activity is to bring benefit to the poor. The assumption made in most efforts to date, be it through mainstream institutional or targeted anti-corruption reform, is that any anti-corruption activity – macro or micro – will automatically improve the flow of funds for development, improve efficiency and the delivery of services to all citizens. This is indeed an assumption. There has been little analysis of the impact of these reforms on the poor and little consideration given to how these reforms might be developed to ensure pro-poor outcomes. This is not necessarily a surprise: the links between broad governance reform and poverty reduction are not as well understood as they might be; and the entire anti-corruption movement has struggled in its efforts to know what works best (Kaufmann, 2003; Shah and Schacter, 2004; Campos, 2006).

The purpose of this paper is twofold. The first is to raise awareness of the need for greater attention to the poor in the development of anti-corruption strategies; and the second is to provide some pointers as to how pro-poor anti-corruption strategies might be developed in the water sector. To this end, the paper will first consider how the poor interact with corruption how they are affected by it and how they use it to their benefit. It will then consider some of the key factors that determine corruption-in-water as it affects the poor, and how this landscape creates experiences different from those of non-poor citizens and users. Finally, borrowing from the efforts of other sectors, it will explore some of the key ingredients that might be considered in the development of a pro-poor anti-corruption water sector strategy. This represents the first stage of an effort to tackle a relatively unchartered part of the corruption-in-water debate.

Swedish Water House Report 22

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Plummer_Pro Poor Anti-corruption water.pdf  (1.18 MB)