Political Economy / Macro analysis

How can governments and the private sector apply digital technologies to enhance transparency and integrity? This report looks at examples of digital solutions that contribute to better governance in African countries.

Two fields of applications are the focus of this report: public procurement, company registries and payments. In these areas, technological innovation can be applied to empower citizens, build trust in the integrity of processes, cut red tape and reduce corruption risks.

The report examines two country case studies in more detail: first, it looks at Kenya, which introduced electronic procurement in 2014 and is seen as a global innovation leader in mobile payments. Second, the report covers Ghana, where the Alliance for Integrity has promoted a business-driven, multi-stakeholder approach seeking to improve transparency and integrity in the economic system, and where the government has committed to open up public contracting.

The findings of this report are based on desk research and 18 interviews conducted with representatives of the private sector, government bodies, donors, think tanks and civil society activists in Nairobi and Accra in November 2017

This report examines the current state of the data ecosystem in Africa, its desired end state, and the
gaps in between. It also provides recommendations on how to bridge these gaps. It maps the current
data ecosystem in Africa in terms of purpose, actors, principles and protocols; legal, legislative and policy frameworks; technological infrastructure, tools and platforms; and the dynamic interactions between purposes, actors, frameworks, technologies and systems.

The purpose of this report by Development Gateway is to support scoping studies on open contracting in West Africa and to identify  potential British interests and priorities in the region. The goal for this project was to gauge the state of openness of public procurement processes in five West African countries (Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Liberia and Guinea) and to identify opportunities for procurement reform  and the adoption of Open Contracting Principles.

This paper looks specifically at international (and especially British) company interests in these five markets. They analysed third party surveys and indices of the corruption environment, especially around public  procurement, and have conducted our own interviews of 17 companies with a long-term commitment to, and knowledge of, these markets.

The Spring 2020 Fiscal Monitor called on governments “to do what it takes” in launching emergency
measures to address the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people and firms, “but to keep the
receipts.” Commensurate with the magnitude of the economic and health crisis, massive fiscal support
packages 2 have been adopted by governments, including a variety of revenue and expenditure measures
(e.g., additional expenditure on healthcare, cash transfers to households and businesses, loan guarantees,
and equity injections). This note argues that ensuring fiscal transparency, public accountability, and
institutional legitimacy are the main pillars of “keeping the receipts.” It provides guidance and best public
financial management (PFM) practices, drawing on cross-country examples.