This book chronicles the anti-corruption reforms in public services in Georgia since the Rose Revolution in late 2003. Through a series of case studies, the book draws out the how of these reforms and distills the key success factors.

The OECD Public Integrity Handbook provides guidance to government, business and civil society on implementing the OECD Recommendation on Public Integrity. The Handbook clarifies what the Recommendation’s thirteen principles mean in practice and identifies challenges in implementing them.

Performance based oversight and accountability can serve as an important antidote to government corruption, inefficiency, and waste. This volume provides an analytical framework and operational approaches needed for the implementation of results-based accountability. The volume makes a major contribution to the literature on public management and evaluation. Major subject areas covered in this book include: performance based accountability, e-government, network solutions to performance measurement and improvement; institutions of accountability in governance; legal and institutional framework to hold government to account; fighting corruption; external accountability; ensuring integrity of revenue administration; the role of supreme audit institutions on detecting fraud and corruption; and the role of parliamentary budget offices and public accounts committees.

This volume comprises papers presented at the OECD Global Forum on Governance: Fighting Corruption and Promoting Integrity in Public Procurement held in Paris in November 2004.

Citizens Against Corruption: Report From The Front Line tells the story of how groups of courageous and dedicated citizens across the globe are taking direct action to root out corruption. It shows how people are no longer prepared to accept the predatory activities of dishonest officials and are challenging their scams. It draws on over 200 unique case studies that describe initiatives undertaken by 130 civil society organisations (CSOs) which engage directly with public agencies to stop the bribery and extortion that damages peoples’ lives and obstructs social and economic progress. This book challenges the notion that, at best, civil society can only have a marginal impact on reducing corruption and argues that aid donors need to radically rethink their assistance for governance reform.Part 1 analyses the role citizens can play in fighting corruption and promoting good governance and briefly tells the story of the Partnership for Transparency Fund (PTF). Part 2 presents studies of India, Mongolia, Philippines, and Uganda – each with its unique history and distinctive circumstances – to illustrate activities undertaken by CSOs to root out corruption, including the tools and approaches that are being used to build pressure on corrupt public agencies to become transparent and accountable. Part 3 addresses key themes – strengthening the rule of law, putting in place effective national anti-corruption strategies and institutions, making public buying and selling honest, promoting grassroots monitoring of public expenditures and the provision of public services, mounting media campaigns to expose and defeat corruption, and empowering ordinary citizens to keep watch on what actually happens at the point of delivery of public services. Part 4 is a summary of lessons learnt and explores the potential, as well as the risks and limitations, of civic activism in a world where greed and dishonesty is the norm. Finally, the book explores the opportunities and dangers faced by aid donors in supporting local CSOs and charts a way forward. Citizens Against Corruption: Report From The Front Line will be of interest to staff working in CSOs and aid agencies, policy analysts and researchers concerned about corruption and poor governance.

Since the Rose Revolution at the end of 2003, Georgia has had singular success in fighting corruption in a variety of public services. This book is an attempt to chronicle these efforts and to distil the 'how to' of these anti-corruption reforms. The reason corruption in public services had to be fought was clear. What had to be done was also obvious to many. But little has been written on 'how' the government made it happen. What were the salient features of Georgia's anti-corruption reforms? Can Georgia's success with cleaning up its public services be replicated elsewhere or is it unique? And are the achievements to date in Georgia sustainable? This book tries to answer these questions. It uses available data and interviews with current and former government officials to describe the challenges facing government, the decisions made, and the tradeoffs considered. It presents eight case studies covering anti-corruption reforms in the patrol police, taxes, customs, power supply, business deregulations, civil and public registries, university entrance exams, and municipal services. They also analyze the accountability framework between the government, public services providers and the users of the services. From these case studies, ten themes emerge that help explain Georgia's success story: having strong political will and vision; establishing credibility early; undertaking a frontal assault; attracting new staff; limiting the role of the state; adopting unconventional methods; coordinating closely; tailoring international experience to local conditions; harnessing technology; and using communications strategically. Many of these may seem obvious. What was special was the comprehensiveness, boldness, pace, and sequencing of these reforms. Much still remains to be done in Georgia, especially in strengthening the institutions that safeguard against a relapse of corruption, and in ensuring adequate checks and balances. And while each country is unique, many elements of Georgia's story can be replicated elsewhere. Georgia's success destroys the myth that 'corruption is culture' and gives hope to all those aspiring to clean up their public services.