Governance and Anti-Corruption Newsletter - January 2007

"Governance and Anti-Corruption Newsletter - January 2007 January 2007 Newsletter - Governance and Anti-Corruption ************************************************************************************This edition of the World Bank Institute\'s Governance and Anti-Corruption newsletter features ongoing and upcoming events, courses, papers and recent publications.On January 11th, 2007, a special Roundtable on Measuring Governance was held at the World Bank to discuss the opportunities and pitfalls in measuring governance across countries and over time. A discussion paper was prepared for the roundtable, as well as a presentation and the discussion, which can all be found at the World Bank Group continues to welcome comments and input on its Governance and Anti-Corruption Strategy. Please note that the deadline for written feedback is January 26, 2007. ************************************************************************************ TABLE OF CONTENTS: I. UPCOMING EVENTS AND COURSES III. PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONS IV. DATA AND INFORMATICS ON GOVERNANCE V. PARTNERSHIPS VI. GOVERNANCE DIAGNOSTIC CAPACITY BUILDING VII. OTHER LANGUAGES: SPANISH, FRENCH, PORTUGUESE, ARABIC, ETC. VIII. IN THE NEWS: WBI GOVERNANCE WORK FEATURED IN THE MEDIA IX. GOVERNANCE LINKS Conference on Open and Participatory Governments at the Local Level (March 9 - 10, 2007)This online program draws from the experiences, findings, and results of WBI's Open and Participatory Government Program at the Municipal Level (GAP Municipal in Spanish). It will provide a platform for learning about and discussing methods and recent research data on the fight against corruption at the local level. The program will expose participants to an interactive learning process with experts in the field. The presentations and discussions will be rounded up by selected case studies from country teams from GAP Municipal courses from previous fiscal years.To register visit http://www.ruv.itesm.mx/portal/promocion/ds/dtbg/ **************************************************************************** Improving Governance and Fighting Corruption, New Frontiers in Public-Private Partnerships, Brussels, Belgium (March 14 - 15, 2007)This conference, organized by the Government of Belgium in cooperation with the World Bank and the OECD, will bring together representatives of governments, international organizations, the private sector, and the academic community. The objective of the conference is to identify policy recommendations that can be taken forward in the OECD/DAC, World Bank and other international fora.For more information contact mnelson1@worldbank.org ************************************************************************************II. ONGOING AND RECENT EVENTSMore detailed information is available at www.worldbank.org/wbi/governance/events ************************************************************************************1 Leveraging E-Government for Successful Anti-Corruption Programs, Washington, DC (January 17, 2006)This seminar discussed the role of information communication technologies (ICT) and e-government in the Bank\'s current anti-corruption agenda and generated discussion of specific instruments to implement its new anti-corruption and governance strategy. WBI Global Programs Director Daniel Kaufmann provided a commentary and discussed implications and possible next steps for the World Bank Group to leverage e-government and IT tools for anticorruption work as an aspect of implementing the Bank\'s governance and anticorruption strategy.",1] http://www.ruv.itesm.mx/portal/promocion/ds/dtbg/ ****************************************************************** Improving Governance and Fighting Corruption, New Frontiers in Public-Private Partnerships, Brussels, Belgium (March 14 - 15, 2007) This conference, organized by the Government of Belgium in cooperation with the World Bank and the OECD, will bring together representatives of governments, international organizations, the private sector, and the academic community. The objective of the conference is to identify policy recommendations that can be taken forward in the OECD/DAC, World Bank and other international fora. For more information contact mnelson1@worldbank.org" ***********************************************************************************II On Measuring Governance: A Roundtable Discussion, Washington, DC (January 11, 2007)The objective of this special roundtable discussion, sponsored by DEC and WBI, to be held this coming Thursday, January 11th, is to discuss the opportunities and pitfalls in measuring governance across countries and over time. A brief discussion paper has been prepared. This draft paper as well as other background materials can be found at http://www.govindicators.org/ ******************************************************************** Joint AMF/IMF High-Level Seminar on Institutions and Economic Growth in the Arab Countries, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (December 19 - 20, 2006)The IMF and the Arab Monetary Fund organized a High Level Seminar on "Institutions and Economic Growth in the Arab Countries" under the joint IMF/AMF Regional Training Program. They discussed how to design policies that would enhance the quality of governance and help build better institutions to foster greater global economic integration, and help ensure sustained high-quality growth conducive to employment creation and rising living standards for the countries in the region. Daniel Kaufmann gave a presentation entitled "Governance Gaps, Challenges and Opportunities: A Worldwide Empirical Perspective and Implications for the Middle East." To view the presentaton visit http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWBIGOVANTCOR/Resources/1740479-1149112210081/2604389-1167941884942/OnMeasuringGovernancePres1-11-07.pdf ****************************************************************************** Ethiopian Workshop on Parliaments in Peacebuilding, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (December 18 - 20, 2006)This workshop brought together parliamentarians from Ethiopia, the Sudan, Southern Sudan and Liberia, representatives from UNDP and civil society, and resource people from WBI, the State University of New York and IDLO. It drew upon the experiences and practices of parliamentarians from conflict-affected countries in different regions of Africa to better understand the potential role African parliaments can play in preventing the escalation of conflict and contributing to poverty reduction in the Horn of Africa and specifically Ethiopia.For more information contact : fstapenhurst@worldbank.org ******************************************************************************* Measuring Law and Institutions, Paris, France, (December 15 - 16, 2006)Hosted by the research program "Economic Attractiveness of Law," this workshop examined the research going on in the field of the indicators on the effect of law or, more generally, institutions on economic development, comparing methodologies used, identifying methodological difficulties, assessing the needs in terms of data availability, standardization of statistics, etc. Daniel Kaufmann made a presentation based on work with Aart Kraay and Massimo Mastruzzi entitled "Measuring Governance: Possibilities and Pitfalls. " To view the presentation visit ",1] ); //--> http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWBIGOVANTCOR/Resources/1740479-1149112210081/2604389-1167941884942/IMF-AMF_AbuDhabiGov12-06.pdf *************************************************************************+ The World Bank's New Anti-Corruption Strategy , Washington, DC (December 14, 2006)WBIGP Senior Economist Francesca Recanatini presented the World Bank Group's new governance strategy to a capacity audience at an event for the Society for International Development and guests. The presentation elaborated on the Bank's multi-level approach to governance and invited comments and suggestions from our partners in development. For more information contact mailto:frecanatini@worldbank.org ************************************************************************************* Workshop on Fiscal Decentralization and Local Governance in India, Raj Baga, Canacona, Goa, India (December 11 - 15, 2006)This workshop was jointly organized by the IIPA and the WBI and partially financed by the PHRD grant from the Government of Japan. Eminent Indian practitioners from federal and state ministries and scholars, World Bank staff and Professor Nobuki Mochida from the University of Tokyo made presentations. For more information contact ashah@worldbank.org or visit http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/WBI/WBIPROGRAMS/PSGLP/0,,contentMDK:21163694~menuPK:461623~pagePK:64156158~piPK:64152884~theSitePK:461606,00.html ************************************************************************************* Informal Institutions and Development – What do we know and what can we do? Paris, France (December 11 - 12, 2006)Organised jointly by the OECD Development Centre and the Development Assistance Committee – Network on Governance (GOVNET), the Seminar assessed the role of informal institutions in the development process. It addressed in particular the following questions: How do informal institutions such as traditions, customs and social norms affect development? What are the linkages and possible conflicts between informal and formal institutions? How can donors and partner countries foster the contribution of informal institutions to a more enabling environment for development? Mark Nelson, who works on governance and capacity development at WBI gave a presentation. To view all presentations, visit http://www.sidw.org/event/2006/the-world-banks-new-anti-corruption-strategy/ ************************************************************************************* Washington, DC (December 1, 2006)At an event sponsored by the Center for Global Development, Daniel Kaufmann and Aart Kraay, Lead Economist for the World Bank\'s Development Research Group, presented the latest update of the Worldwide Governance Indicators (produced by D. Kaufmann, A. Kraay, and M. Mastruzzi) covering over 200 countries for the past decade. Following the presentation, Steve Radelet moderated a conversation with the panelists exploring the strengths and weaknesses of alternative approaches to measuring governance. Also participating were Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, former Minister of Finance in Nigeria, and Marianne Camerer, Co-founder and International Director of Global Integrity. To view the presentation, visit http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWBIGOVANTCOR/Resources/1740479-1149112210081/2604389-1149699443576/GM5_CGD_presentation_12_01_06.pdf For more information visit http://www.cgdev.org/content/calendar/detail/11349/ ************************************************************************* Judicial Reform in Malawi, Commercial Courts, Lilongwe, Malawi (December 1 - 2, 2006)This activity aimed to foster reforms in the judicial and legal system to better define and establish the role of Commercial Courts. International experts in the field of commercial and trade law presented the theoretical framework along with their respective experiences, and discussed with participants the potential incorporation of these aspects into reform work in the country. The overall objective of the legal and judicial reform program was to contribute to the improvement of a more impartial, independent, and effective judiciary. ashah@worldbank.org or visit http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/WBI/WBIPROGRAMS/PSGLP/0,,contentMDK:21127133~menuPK:461623~pagePK:64156158~piPK:64152884~theSitePK:461606,00.html" ******************************************************************************** Digital Radio Preparatory Program Francophone Africa, Burkina Faso, Madagascar, and Senegal (November 22, 2006 - January 24, 2007)This activity will provide a structured platform for officials and citizens to learn specific anticorruption strategies, which can be adapted and applied to their municipalities. The activity is preparatory work for potential delivery of the digital radio program in francophone Africa. It will bring participants together with experts on anticorruption/municipal governance to discuss the course material and make recommendations for the potential radio production of the course in the French language. For more information contact mailto:ecrespo@worldbank.org or visit http://info.worldbank.org/etools/wbi_learning/activity.cfm?sch_id=GOV07-01-043" target="_blank">http://info.worldbank.org/etools/wbi_learning/activity.cfm?sch_id=GOV07-01-043 ************************************************************************************* Accountability, Governance, and Education Decentralization, Washington, DC (July 15 - December 30, 2006)This program covered topics in education decentralization, such as education finance, information systems, and the impact on quality. For more information contact mailto:Dfaison@worldbank.org ************************************************************************************III. PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONSListing 1. On Measuring Governance: A Roundtable Discussion.A brief discussion paper has been prepared for this event by Daniel Kaufmann and Aart Kraay. It examines their views on the challenges and opportunities facing all governance and investment climate indicators and diagnositcs, and within them, those for the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI). To view the paper, please visit http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWBIGOVANTCOR/Resources/1740479-1149112210081/2604389-1167941884942/On_Measuring_Governance.pdf2. The Worldwide Governance Indicators Project: Answering the Critics (draft) by Daniel Kaufmann, Aart Kraay, and Massimo Mastruzzi. December 29, 2006To view the paper, please visit ",1] ); Dfaison@worldbank.org or visit