The struggle for freedom in Africa all too often has morphed into struggle for attaining and holding onto power, says Paul Hoffman of Accountability Now. This means that services like basic education are compromised, and too few children make it to matric, or leave school without the skills and knowledge that would make them employable. Too many languish in unemployment. Too many do not even have a school to go to. All due to corruption.
Corruption Watch has put out a call for research and policy papers in relation to its Project Larona, an initiative that aims to help address income and wealth inequality related to land rights, land reform, and access to land resources. Download the full research brief here.
The office of the Auditor-General is already at work on its task of conducting real-time audits on the funds that have been allocated for disaster relief following devastating floods in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. Last week Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke briefed the parliamentary Standing Committee on the Auditor-General on the steps her office will follow in ensuring the relief funds are used for the intended purpose.
The South African government does not have an illustrious track record of implementation of its plans and strategies. It therefore cannot, and should not, be solely responsible for the establishment of a beneficial ownership register and the accompanying legal framework, but a multi-stakeholder approach with civil society and the private sector will make all the difference.
South Africa cannot be counted among the numerous countries that are experiencing problems with beneficial ownership transparency (BOT), because it is capable of telling a good story in this regard. This was one of the messages that came out of the high-level panel discussion at last week’s BOT conference, held in Cape Town.
Beneficial ownership transparency (BOT) is no longer a nice-to-have. It’s an essential weapon in the fight against corporate opacity, money laundering, illicit financial flows, dodgy procurement deals, and much more. A two-day conference, co-hosted last week by Corruption Watch, brought together stakeholders from various sectors to establish the current situation in South Africa and determine a path to the implementation of BOT.
The latest Prasa annual report, discussed at the end of March 2022 before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts, reveals that not much has improved at the embattled state-owned entity. In the 2020/2021 financial year Prasa recorded a loss of R1.9-billion and increased operating costs of R15.5-billion, while its revenue decreased by R900-million.
Journalists are whistle-blowers too, and their work, as a vital link in the chain of exposing corruption, can change the world – but it’s a risky business. A report published recently by Unesco, titled Threats that Silence, looks at the treatment of journalists globally and narrows down its focus to highlight regional trends.
Members of the media are invited to a two-day conference on beneficial ownership transparency in South Africa, taking place in Cape Town on 16 -17 May 2022. The event is hosted by the Department of Public Service and Administration, the Financial Intelligence Centre, Open Government Partnership, Corruption Watch, and Open Ownership.