Uganda citizens get anonymous whistleblower app to fight corruption

Dingswayo · 2014-10-18T12:59:16+00:00

Douglas Buule, a teacher at Kiwenda primary, a government school outside Uganda's capital Kampala, faces corruption on a daily basis. "The money used to access the chalk comes late, even towards the end of term," explains Buule. "It is a big burden to keep on writing on a chalk board. So sometimes the head teacher buys chalk on credit or even uses her own money." "There is lack of transparency in many government institutions on the funds that are supplied and used. That lack of transparency is affecting day-to-day learning," said Buule, complaining of the country's endemic corruption. But now, he has a way to fight back. Action for Transparency (A4T) is piloting a new Smartphone app in three Ugandan districts, where communities are being armed with information allowing them to report anonymously when budget allocations for health centers and schools fail to match public expenditure. The GPS-enabled A4T app lets users receive the location of a school or health center, the number of staff allocated to them by both the government and the institution, and the amount of money approved and dispersed. If, for example, they suspect money is being misused if the government provides funds for an ambulance which cannot be found, the user can simply click on the app's whistle icon to send an instant report to the A4T website and Facebook page. "When people know they're being monitored they're less likely to squander or misuse money," said Gerald Businge, the A4T project coordinator. Uganda citizens get anonymous whistleblower app to fight corruption | Whistleblower Today

Thread starter Dingswayo
Start date Oct 18, 2014

Dingswayo

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Uganda citizens get anonymous whistleblower app to fight corruption

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