Practitioners and Advocates Promote the Power of Information in Global Development

Practitioners and Advocates Promote the Power of Information in Global
Development

An engaged public increases aid effectiveness, experts tell EU conference

STOCKHOLM, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- 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.

SOURCE Revenue Watch Institute

Julia Bjorne, Global Reporting, cell: +46-704-32-81-45