Informal practices and informal (governing) networks

Originally published on GI-ACE by Scott Newton  The Central Asia prong of our research has been examining the interplay and dynamics between informal governing networks and the formal legal–institutional system—the rules and procedures (and the way they operate) that formally structure and organise everything from government and the bureaucracy (including the justice sector and judiciary) to companies…

Barriers for small-scale traders in Kenya: Exploring women’s challenges on International Women’s Day

Originally published on GI-ACE by Melissa Trimble, Alissa Krueger, Veronica Akaezuwa, and Shruti Manian International Women’s Day on March 8 allows us the opportunity to reflect on the status of women’s rights across the globe. As a research team from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs that is part of the Global Integrity…

Fresh perspectives on the effectiveness of anti-corruption law enforcement in Nigeria

Originally published on GI-ACE Nigeria’s anti-corruption law enforcement efforts are gradually growing more effective as practitioners adapt and innovate in response to many persistent challenges. Sometimes caricatured as sclerotic, politicized, or error-prone, high-level anti-corruption efforts are becoming noticeably more innovative and pragmatic. Instead of being abandoned under pressure or resulting in decade-long, quixotic prosecutions, high-profile…

Research insights into the causes of medicine theft in Malawi

Originally published on GI-ACE Malawi continues to struggle to ensure its citizens receive the medicines they need, and the struggle is no secret: Malawi’s major newspaper, The  Nation, featured a report by the Global Fund which estimates that 23 percent of the medicines it purchases to fight HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria in Malawi ”vanish” at…