WORKSHOP ENGAGING CITIZENS TO COUNTER CORRUPTION FOR BETTER PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY AND ACHIEVEMENT OF THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

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1 WORKSHOP ENGAGING CITIZENS TO COUNTER CORRUPTION FOR BETTER PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY AND ACHIEVEMENT OF THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS OPENING SESSION: WELCOMING REMARKS AND INTRODUCTION TO THE WORKSHOP Roberto Villarreal Chief, Development Management Branch Division for Public Administration and Development Management United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs October 2011, Palmeraie Golf Palace Complex, Marrakesh, Morocco

2 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOMING REMARKS WHO This workshop has been organized by UNDESA in cooperation with UNODC Through the Development Management Branch of the Division of Public Administration and Development Management of UNDESA and the Corruption and Economic Crime Branch of the Division for Treaty Affairs of UNODC Invitations were delivered by direct to 500 individuals, groups and organizations, and information and contact data for any interested person to attend was included in the two workshop websites In government, the private sector, civil society and academia of countries in all regions around the world as countering corruption is a fundamental matter to foster inclusive, equitable and sustainable development in all countries, both developed and developing and because success requires multi-stakeholder country-wide strategies 79 confirmed participants from 33 countries (23 developing, 10 developed) and 5 international organizations ORGANIGRAM 2

3 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOMING REMARKS WHY (1) In September 2010, as a conclusion of the High Level Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly (GA) to assess progress towards the 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) after the first decade since their adoption, the GA acknowledged achievements around the world and called on member States to: look at practices that have proven effective and are replicable support participatory, community-led strategies promote universal access to public and social services invest in basic services for health, education, water and sanitation ensure the full participation of all segments of society, including the poor and disadvantaged, in decision-making processes work towards transparent and accountable systems of governance at the national and international levels The UN Secretariat looks forward to further assist member States in this regard MDGs GA DECLARATION 3

4 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOMING REMARKS WHY (2) Examples of corruption with negative effects for development, social justice and advancement towards the MDGs Deviating funds from public budgets intended for poverty alleviation, education and healthcare programs to influence political campaigns Manipulating public procurment or concessions to public service providers in infrastructure, equipment and materials, in ways that increase the cost or lower the quality of government services, education, healthcare, etc. Taking and giving bribes to gain preferential access to public services: public registries, schools, hospitals and clinics, water, justice, etc. Taking and giving bribes in recruitment of public officers for public service delivery Taking and giving bribes to influence laws or regulations on environmental matters, etc. Examples of weak accountability with same negative effects Inadequate reporting by government to citizens on uses of public funds, and outputs/outcomes from develoment programs Inadequate use of audits for political reasons Culture of secrecy in public policy decision making, favoring capture by vested interests or elites 4

5 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOMING REMARKS WHAT FOR Analyze the engagement of citizens, and their organizations in the private sector and civil society, to cooperate with the public administration to counter corruption in the delivery of public services, particularly those related with the MDGs, in the framework of the UNCAC The objectives are: To provide participants with a better understanding of the issues, and with updated knowledge as to what works, and in which contexts offer them policy advise from experts and practitioners of diverse disciplines and from different countries enable participants to determine if there are possible improvements in the public administration of their respective countries to engage citizens for countering corruption to better advance towards the MDGs. identify future capacity building activities by DPADM and UNODC with other international organizations, to assist member States in connection with this 5

6 INTRODUCTION AND WELCOMING REMARKS HOW Series of sessions of 1.5 hours each, devoted to: Concepts, rationales and institutions Bottom-up initiatives arising from citizens, civil society and the private sector Top-down initiatives coming from government, including uses of ICT for egovernance and eparticipation Promotion of enabling conditions to develop national integrity systems Analysis of opportunities for international cooperation Each session will encompass: Setting the focus by a Moderator An initial short presentation by a specialist, to motivate discussion Comments from 5 practitioners of different countries and diverse institutional perspectives Open discussion with all participants 6

7 ONE FINAL REMARK The nature of this workshop is to facilitate collective thought through deliberation on the central topic Participants will without doubt face a paradox: the better they succeed in deepening the discussion on these matters, the more there will be to further deliberate Thus, time in the next two days will not only be a limited resource, but clearly one in very short supply To continue a rich dialogue among all of you on this topic, after this personal meeting, you will be invited to maintain, if interested, a virtual dialogue through an ad hoc blog on internet that will prolong your fruitful exchanges of information and knowledge 7

8 END OF PRESENTATION We thank you for attending this workshop and hope you find it useful For additional information, or to explore possibilities of cooperation, please see all workshop s background materials and presentations at: or contact: Roberto Villarreal rvillarreal@un.org Anni Haataja haatajaa@un.org 8

9 ANNEXES 9

10 DPADM AND DMB IN THE UN SECRETARIAT BACK

11 MILLENNIUM DECLARATION Development encompasses a considerable large array of matters, so to focus attention and concentrate efforts from relevant actors in a set of very fundamental ones, the Millennium Declaration adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2000, highlighted the following and set corresponding targets for the year 2015 to guide adequate progress (continued )

12 MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND TARGETS (1) Goal 1 End Poverty and Hunger Target 1: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than $1 a day Target 2: Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all, including women and young people Target 3: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger Goal 2 Achieve Universal Primary Education Target 1: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling Goal 3 Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women Target 1: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015

13 MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND TARGETS (2) Goal 4 Reduce Child Mortality Target 1: Reduce by two thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the underfive mortality rate Goal 5 Improve maternal Health Target 1: Reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio Target 2: Achieve universal access to reproductive health Goal 6 Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases Target 1: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS Target 2: Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it Target 3: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases

14 MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND TARGETS (3) Goal 7 Ensure Environmental Sustainability Target 1: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources Target 2: Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss Target 3: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation Target 4: By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers

15 MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND TARGETS (4) Goal 8 Develop a Global Partnership for Development GO BACK Target 1: Address the special needs of least developed countries, landlocked countries and small island developing states Target 2: Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, nondiscriminatory trading and financial system Target 3: Deal comprehensively with developing countries debt Target 4: In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries Target 5: In cooperation with the private sector, make available benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications

16 UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION A/RES/65/1: KEEPING THE PROMISE: UNITED TO ACHIEVE THE MDGs We take note of the lessons learned and successful policies and approaches in the implementation and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and recognize that with increased political commitment these could be replicated and scaled up for accelerating progress, including by: ( ) (e) Supporting participatory, community-led strategies aligned with national development priorities and strategies; (f) Promoting universal access to public and social services and providing social protection floors; (g) Improving capacity to deliver quality services equitably; (h) Implementing social policies and programmes, including appropriate conditional cash-transfer programmes, and investing in basic services for health, education, water and sanitation; (i) Ensuring the full participation of all segments of society, including the poor and disadvantaged, in decision-making processes; ( ) (l) Enhancing opportunities for women and girls and advancing the economic, legal and political empowerment of women; (n) Working towards transparent and accountable systems of governance at the national and international levels; BACK

17 END OF ANNEXES 17