Holistic approaches to transparency and sustainable development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess African performance for substantially reducing all forms of corruption and bribery on the continent by 2030, through the indicators for achieving Target 16.5 of the sustainable development goals (SDGs). Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the available and accessible relevant data from credible sources, this work quantifies, outlines and analyses the relationship between corruption/bribery and sustainable development as it applies primarily to sub-Saharan Africa; assesses the trends in the region through the official indicators for achieving Target 16.5 of the SDGs; and recommends other indicators for assessing ethical behaviour in African political, administrative and business leadership and institutions for achieving sustainable development and improved ethical performance towards significant reductions in all manifestations of bribery and corruption on the continent by 2030. Findings Corruption and bribery are found to affect all SDG-related sectors, undermining development outcomes and severely compromising efforts to achieve the SDGs in Africa. Consequently, prioritising corruption reduction including from money laundering, bribery and other illegal activities is a necessary requirement for achieving sustainable development, good governance, building effective and inclusive institutions as required by SDG 16, and funding the achievement of the SDGs. Originality/value The main value of the paper is the insights it provides through the very comprehensive compilation of statistical information that quantifies, and with analysis, the corruption/bribery avenues and the resultant deleterious effects on sustainable development in Africa.

Download Full-text

Rwanda as a Knowledge Society

Developing Knowledge Societies for Distinct Country Contexts - Advances in Knowledge Acquisition, Transfer, and Management ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-8873-3.ch003 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 63-84

Author(s):

Rehema Baguma

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Cyber Security ◽

Knowledge Society ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

African Countries ◽

Resource Base ◽

Fast Growing ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Natural Resource Base ◽

Telecom Sector

Generating and developing knowledge societies is a key element for sustainable development as defined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015. Based on a limited natural resource base, Rwanda chose to take an approach to development that differs from that of its neighbours by making ICTs the cornerstone of its development. With this focus, government of Rwanda (GoR) took a Pro-ICT led public policy that has led to several public reforms such as but not limited to liberalization of the telecom sector, enactment of laws to govern electronic messages, signatures, transactions, data protection, cyber-security and ICT usage, development of relevant infrastructure and establishment of key institutions such as the Rwanda Utilities and Regulatory Agency (RURA) and Rwanda Information Society Authority (RISA). These reforms have in turn led to a fast-growing ICT sector in Rwanda compared to that of the neighbours. To-date, Rwanda is one of the fastest growing African countries in ICT. In 2015, Rwanda emerged as the third best ICT country in Sub-Saharan Africa behind South Africa and Seychelles. In 2016, it moved one position up and emerged 2nd behind Seychelles. The fast-growing ICT sector has stimulated entrepreneurial creativity and growth across the economy. This chapter examines the best practices that Rwanda has applied in her journey to a knowledge society that could possibly help other countries in the region pursuing the same objective. The chapter also briefly reviews challenges and gaps in Rwanda's journey to a knowledge society and suggests recommendations for further improvement.

Download Full-text

An Overview of Population Growth and Sustainable Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Advances in Electronic Government, Digital Divide, and Regional Development - Handbook of Research on Sustainable Development and Governance Strategies for Economic Growth in Africa ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-3247-7.ch025 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 480-499

Author(s):

Vincent Sebastian Pande ◽

Neema Penance Kumburu

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Population Growth ◽

Future Development ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Realistic Approach ◽

Development Policies ◽

A Priority ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Ssa Countries

Development efforts in several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are harmed by a combination of many factors, high rates of population growth being among of them. Despite the strong links between population and sustainable development, these issues were not a priority in broader development policies and strategies in SSA. Population and sustainable development had been often addressed separately at policy and programme levels. Despite the fact that decision makers in these countries recognize the importance of population issues for sustainable development, these issues are rarely worked on together, limiting the payoff that could result from integrating the two. This chapter, therefore, re-examines and relates these two concepts to see their compatibility and provides a more realistic approach in converting population growth into economic gains for future development of SSA countries and Africa in general.

Download Full-text