Accountability Lab

📌 𝗘𝗨 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗦𝗢 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗙𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗿𝘂𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 Today, the Enhancing Accountability Programme hosted the Annual Grantees Meeting at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg - a venue deeply rooted in the values of justice, integrity, and accountability. Discussions focused on the opportunities and challenges facing civil society organisations (CSOs) in the fight against corruption. The gathering provided a platform for grantees to share lessons, discuss approaches for greater impact, and to explore best practices for effectively communicating their efforts in driving accountability, transparency and good governance. Reflecting on the recent EU-South Africa Summit in Cape Town, where the EU announced a Global Gateway Investment Package worth €4.7 billion for South Africa, Mr. Theo Kaspers , Head of Cooperation at the European Union Delegation to South Africa, highlighted the crucial role of #CSOs in fostering trade relations. He noted: "𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘌𝘜 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢, 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘶𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘚𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘚𝘖𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺." Enhancing Accountability TAF remains dedicated to providing technical assistance to CSOs and Chapter 9 and 10 institutions across South Africa, amplifying their efforts to root out #corruption and drive meaningful impact. Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) PARI Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI) European Union Delegation to South Africa SECTION27 OUTA - Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse Legal Resources Centre Equal Education Human Rights Media Trust Accountability Lab Afesis Equality Collective Foundation for Human Rights Corruption Watch Ross Clarke Shingai Mutize Zanele Mwale Felicia Maremi

💬 Real #accountability will take time. Civil society is not just fighting #corruption; we are fighting for Nigeria’s future. It is time to make accountability the norm and not just an exception. — Odeh Friday (Accountability Lab Nigeria ) at Chatham House Africa Programme conference on #Nigeria's #anticorruption agenda Supported by MacArthur Foundation #CHAfrica #CollectiveAction

It’s been a whirlwind start to 2025 for the international aid community given sweeping changes to US global development funding, resources, and staffing. Curious how intentional action can work toward closing this gap?    Join us for an online discussion that brings together thought leaders and driven change agents across global development policy, advocacy, and funding to discuss what it will take across sectors to preserve progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).   Date: Thursday, March 27 Time: 11:00am PT / 2:00pm ET  Location: Zoom webinar Cost: Free! 🔗 RSVP for the event here:  https://lnkd.in/e_WmzGj5  If you can't make it, you can still sign up to receive the recording. 

Join the conversation! The world is shifting fast, and civic space is evolving. Join us for a Civic Charge Fireside Chat with changemakers who are actively shaping civic space and social movements. 📅 Date: Wednesday, 19 March 2025 ⏰ Time: 04:00 PM - 06:00 PM (GMT) 🔗 Zoom Link: https://bit.ly/3FARVPM Don't miss this opportunity to learn from their experiences, celebrate achievements, and strengthen the relationships that drive meaningful change. See you there! #CivicCharge #SocialMovements #CivicEngagement #Leadership #AccountabilityLab

What happens when billions in aid and federal funding disappear? (Spoiler: It’s not just numbers on a spreadsheet—it’s real people, real jobs, and real communities impacted.) Luckily, we know some great folks tracking these shifts so we don’t have to. I know I’ve got data nerds in my midst, and if you're like me, you want to skip the doomscrolling and go straight to well-organized, insightful data. Well, good news… (drumroll🥁) …we’ve got a roundup for you! 🛑 Impact Trackers - USAID 🛑 📊 Global Aid Freeze Tracker via Accountability Lab & Humentum – Visualizing crowd-sourced survey responses from organizations impacted by the USAID freeze: https://lnkd.in/gwN4BpSS 📊 USAID Economic Impact Tracker, State Data via USAID Stop Work – Highlighting the $28.9B U.S. based organizations will lose due to the USAID Stop Work Orders: https://lnkd.in/gy7KXgpb 📊 Map of American Institutions Partnering with USAID via USAID Stop Work – Shows a subset of USAID’s partnerships with private sector, colleges and universities, faith-based organizations, non-profits, and research institutions: https://lnkd.in/gSrUi48z 📊 Terminated USAID Activities, Country and Sector Data via Brian Banks – Breakdown of affected programs by country and sector: https://lnkd.in/gWMBWfZb 📊 USAID Agricultural Ties, by State via Jordan S. - Shareable graphics showing the links between USAID agriculture funding and each state: https://lnkd.in/gg8_URkY 📊 Funding Freeze Fallout Tracker via Devex – Tracks furloughs, layoffs, and program cuts across affected organizations: https://lnkd.in/g3GREq2s? 🛑 Impact Trackers - Federal 🛑 📊 COMING SOON! Federal Cuts Tracker Map via Abigail André – Quantifies harm due to federal funding cuts, showing most-affected areas and communities. Follow Abigail for more info on the launch! 📊 Federal Environmental Web Tracker via Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI) – Monitors changes and removals of environmental data and policies from U.S. federal websites: https://lnkd.in/g3saBbEp 📊 DOGE / GSA Lease Termination Analysis via Arco Real Estate Solutions - Tracking leasing terminations across Federal agencies: https://lnkd.in/gRa6TEDz Explore more insights, analysis, and community-sourced data here: bit.ly/USAIDHub. What are your go-to data sources? Drop them in the comments and we'll make sure they get added/amplified on the Hub!

🚀 Today, we’re thrilled to launch the #OpenGovChallenge Awards! This global recognition is set to celebrate bold, innovative #opengov initiatives that are advancing transparency, civic participation, and accountability. Winners will be honored at the 2025 #OGPSummit in Spain, where they will: ✅ Take the stage to present their work to a global audience of government leaders, civil society, and key stakeholders. ✅ Inspire peers by leading discussions and engaging with changemakers worldwide. ✅ Access new opportunities, including potential funding, technical support, and media visibility. 👥 Who can apply? Public sector institutions from OGP member countries, including local governments, parliaments, and judicial bodies. Join us in celebrating open gov champions and showcasing their global impact! 📅 Deadline: May 31, 2025 🔗 Learn more & apply: bit.ly/ogc-awards

"As political and funding winds shift, it is important that democracy, rights, and governance non-profits explore ways to diversify their funding streams for greater resilience." If you're an organization in the #DRG space affected by the US government's aid cuts, and looking for alternative revenue streams, here are some sources Accountability Lab co-CEO Cheri-Leigh Erasmus and Open Government Partnership's Joseph Foti have gathered to help fortify and keep your critical work going. They offer a list of alternative funding models with an explanation of each, including its benefits and rewards - divided into categories of financial innovation, pooling risks and assets, and payment services. Let us know what you think? 👓 READ the full piece here: https://bit.ly/41JAvI5

🔬 Accountability Lab Nigeria recently examined the systemic obstacles to achieving tech accountability, focusing on the impact of collaborations between governments and tech companies. In a January policy paper “Beyond the Consumer: Shaping Africa’s Voice in Tech Accountability and Human Rights" Odeh Friday, Ehi Idakwo and Jake Okechukwu Effoduh explored the ways that such collaborations can contribute to Africa’s relegation to the role of a consumer market rather than an active participant in innovation, especially in environments with weak regulatory frameworks. READ the full policy paper here:https://bit.ly/4iLNgZt 📊 It is in this context that the Lab created an Open Contracting AI platform for citizens, journalists, researchers and policymakers to easily access procurement information. For now, the platform includes 2500 health and education contracts over 3 Nigerian states – Ekiti, Edo and Plateau. The system extracts information from physical contracts and converts it into structured procurement data, which can then be accessed through an easy-to-use chat function. Users can track how public funds are spent and identify contract awardees in real time without any technical skills. The tool is part of AL Nigeria's push for procurement transparency in the country, with the aim of building trust between people and government, and ensuring powerholders be held accountable. 🌐 CHECK them out here: https://lnkd.in/d22p7dcp https://lnkd.in/dtkktS6q https://lnkd.in/dT7Zue6B

As part of an ongoing survey, we're hearing how some organizations have started receiving payments for work affected by the US government aid freeze, while others are trying to urgently diversify funding streams. If you're affected, what other strategies have you heard about? We'd be grateful to hear from you. We’re continuing to track the effects of the #foreignassistance cancellations with Humentum. Our survey is available in English, Spanish, French, and Arabic. Take it now, and please share it with your peers 🔗 https://lnkd.in/dHhh-mvr #GlobalAidTracker #FundingFreeze

Fellowship for Equity and Accountability Supporting Climate Justice Activists Just shy of two years since ARC launched the Sandra N. Smithey Fellowship for Equity and Accountability in International Development, all eight fellowships have been awarded to activist-scholars from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Cameroon, Colombia, Haiti, Nepal, Peru, and Tanzania. For fellows Mayra Tenjo Hurtado (Colombia) and Prekkshya Bimali (Nepal), promoting climate justice is at the heart of their self-created programs.   Mayra has dedicated her fellowship to learning about and promoting Amazonian indigenous and Afro-descendant women’s strategies to fight climate change. She is more than halfway through her in-person and virtual research, which aspires to reach women’s networks across the Amazon regions of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. She plans to take her findings to World Bank country offices in these countries and, if possible, to World Bank headquarters in the US.   Prekkshya's fellowship aims to strengthen civic engagement and accountability in Nepal’s World Bank-supported Green, Resilient, and Inclusive Development (GRID) approach. Working with Accountability Lab (AL-Nepal), she is investigating GRID’s impact on climate finance in Nepal, assessing whether and how it contributes to climate justice, or to informing the World Bank’s climate agenda. She also is exploring how the World Bank and other development actors can proactively bolster community management of natural resources. More on the fellowship: https://lnkd.in/deedpnUV Rachel Nadelman Accountability Lab Mott Foundation