Practitioners and Advocates Promote the Power of Information in Global Development

October 22, 2009

- An engaged public increases aid effectiveness, experts tell EU conference

STOCKHOLM, October 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Public disclosure and public engagement can transform development strategy into social change, a group of international communications and governance experts told leaders gathered today at the annual European Development Days conference.

The panel of transparency activists, policy analysts and members of parliament explained to the international audience how effective communications can strengthen transparency and accountability in donor-financed programs, as well as in the management of revenues from the extractive industries.

"The goal of the Development Days conference is to make aid more effective, which means more than dispensing money," said panel moderator Anki Wood, incoming communications officer for the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner. "The same can be said of communications: It means more than providing information; it means creating opportunities to engage," said Wood.

Participants brought a range of experiences and national contexts to the discussion. Liberian activist Alfred Brownell recently helped his country become the first African nation designated "compliant" with the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). Participants also included Auditor General of Zambia Anna O. Chifungula and Swedish members of parliament Bodil Ceballos and Christian Holm.

Panelist David Isaakson of Global Reporting, one of the event's co-hosts, said, "When the public has the tools to interact with leaders and policymakers, government and donors alike realize they must treat citizens as partners, and not merely as a passive audience."

"Decisions about budgets or revenues from oil and mineral resources often take place outside public scrutiny," said panelist Antoine Heuty of the Revenue Watch Institute. "When finance and revenue management processes are made visible, it gives regular citizens the knowledge to ask the right questions, and helps them see that they have a voice and a role in their countries governance, industry and development," he said.

"Development programs can also benefit from efficient methods developed by the private sector," said panelist Per Tjernberg of BearingPoint Management & Technology consulting firm, "methods which ensure results, control over costs and transparency."

To learn more about Development Days events, please go to: http://www.eudevdays.eu

The Revenue Watch Institute (www.revenuewatch.org) is a non-profit policy institute and grantmaking organization that promotes the responsible management of oil, gas and mineral resources for the public good. With effective revenue management, citizen engagement and real government accountability, natural resource wealth can drive development and national growth. RWI provides the expertise, funding and technical assistance to help countries realize these benefits.

BearingPoint (www.bearingpoint.com) provides management and technology consulting services in various parts of the world. Development cooperation has problems from time to time in reaching its goals for sustainability, efficiency, accountability, transparency and results. This is very similar to what the industry sector has faced for decades, developing innovative methods to improve its capability to reach its goals in time, with high quality and at the lowest cost. It is thus logical to think that similar methods could be applied to development cooperation.

Global Reporting (www.globalreporting.net) is a communication consultant company with passion for the world. We believe in knowledge, engagement and presence. We possess a high level of expertise in the areas of development cooperation, trade and labour, as well as in peace and international humanitarian law. Communication can be a vital tool to achieve development goals, strengthen democracy and increase the respect for human rights. By coordinating the communication between all stakeholders and letting more people participate in the process the development process will be improved.