Corruption last year cost the world more than one trillion dollars. That is a trillion dollars we can’t use to get better health care, education, food and environment. While anti-corruption and good governance programs sound like a good way to help countries develop, measuring their impact on ending extreme poverty remains elusive, as the experience from recent World Bank programs shows. And the proposed targets for the post-2015 development goals such as substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all its forms sound great, but are essentially well-meaning slogans with little content. According to a new paper for the Copenhagen Consensus Center, the one governance target that is worth pursuing is providing a legal identity for all citizens, including birth registration, because it is concrete and brings a range of benefits. Such programs help build the capacity of governments to run efficient systems. Cards guarantee citizens access to public services and the right to vote, which in turn increases government accountability and reduces poverty. The benefits would at least equal the cost of every dollar invested. Heres my new article for Forbes: forbes/sites/bjornlomborg/2015/01/22/good-governance-well-meaning-slogan-or-desirable-development-goal/ The study is available here: copenhagenconsensus/post-2015-consensus/governance-and-institutions
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 13:06:00 +0000
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