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| SAAC HOME AND LATEST NEWS | ABOUT THE SAAC PROJECT | SAAC INFORMATION AND RESOURCES |
WELCOME TO THE Strengthening Action Against Corruption (SAAC) Project MINI-SITE!
This is the home page of our SAAC mini-site, and here you’ll find a short introduction to the project, as well as the latest news and developments, from report launches and other valuable information to activities and events. To see other pages in this mini-site, use the navigation aid just below the main image on this page.
What is SAAC all about?
Corruption Watch (CW), in collaboration with Social Change Assistance Trust (SCAT) and Transparency International (TI) and funded by the European Union, is committed to enhancing accountability in South Africa through the Strengthening Action Against Corruption (SAAC) Project. This initiative specifically targets community advice offices/civil society organisations (CSOs) in the Eastern Cape province, equipping them with the knowledge and resources needed to identify and address corruption. By supporting these organisations in mobilising their communities, SAAC fosters a culture of accountability and transparency that is fundamental to anti-corruption efforts in South Africa.
The project’s primary goals are to:
- Strengthen anti-corruption initiatives driven by CSOs.
- Enhance engagement and collaboration on anti-corruption efforts between civil society, state institutions supporting constitutional democracy, the public, and the private sector.
- Improve transparency, which in turn strengthens the deterrence and detection of corruption across the public and private sectors.
For a more detailed look into SAAC’s background, goals, and locations, please visit the About SAAC page.
The latest SAAC news
Anti-corruption Guide on Understanding Corruption and Public Accountability – November 2024
Download our new Anti-corruption Guide on Understanding Corruption and Public Accountability.
The document explains corruption in understandable terms, and offers advice on topics such as how to hold municipalities accountable, identifying what is corruption and what is not corruption, how to recognise various forms of corruption, how to be an active citizen, and more. It also provides a useful infographic of the structure of government.
Report-back from the second Corruption Busting Bootcamp – May 2025
We conducted our second Corruption Busting Bootcamp (CBB2), which took place from 19 to 23 May 2025. While the first bootcamp had the purpose of introducing the CBOs and CAOs to the project and its objectives and to train them on how to achieve its goals, CBB2 touched base on the progress of their campaigns in the community. There was a clear and palpable distinction between the two events in terms of how CBO and CAO leaders received information as well as how they expressed their roles in communities.
We plainly saw how the elevated confidence shown at CBB2 meant that our activists have now transitioned into leadership roles with clear strategies for how to mobilise their communities into forming organised structures that demand accountability safely and effectively.
For more information about the happenings and discussions that took place at May’s bootcamp, please download the CBB2 report, or read it online below.
Youth Ambassador for Accountability (YAfA) workshop 1 – April 2025
At the beginning of April 2025 we hosted a week-long training workshop for a cohort of young people, nominated through their community work across different parts of the Eastern Cape. They received training in advocacy work, communications, and media, and how to hold each other accountable as part of the SAAC’s Youth Ambassador for Accountability (YAfA) programme. The workshop was successful in bringing to the fore the key issues that young people affected by corruption and poor governance see in their communities every day, and encouraging them to be able to confidently answer the question: ‘what can I do about it?’ Read more in this short opinion piece.
Our first Corruption Busting Bootcamp (CBB1) took place from 15 to 19 May 2024. It brought together participants from around 30 community-focused organisations that span the length and breadth of the Eastern Cape. These include community advice centres, community development organisations, and advocacy groups, among others. The structure and focus of the CBB was informed by a baseline survey conducted in April 2024 that sought to assess the level of awareness among the envisaged bootcamp participants regarding the topic of corruption.
