Responsible and accountable institutions

Corruption remains one of the most significant and persistent impediments to development progress, and a challenge across the Europe and Central Asia region. While approaches to combatting it vary from Georgia’s sweeping top-down changes to more incremental approaches taken in other countries, strong political support is the one constant to successful reduction. The Open Government Partnership is increasingly playing an important role in the region: Armenia, Georgia, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Ukraine and all Western Balkan countries have either developed an open government action plan, or are in the process.

Currently, in the region, levels of government effectiveness vary, which can be seen in data on people’s perceptions of the quality of public services, of the independence of the civil service, and of the way policies are formulated. At the same time, the region is increasingly looking to innovation, e-government and use of data and technology to help streamline and improve services.

Building responsive and accountable institutions at all levels of government is central to encouraging strong citizen engagement and giving people a sense of ownership over important decisions.

In order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of government and the provision of services, UNDP works to:

• Combat corruption and increase transparency, thereby increasing the openness of institutions and improving access to services for the poor and the disadvantaged;
• Empower local governments by facilitating the decentralization of government and strengthening local capacities;
• Support the delivery of quality services and improved accountability – with an emphasis on technology and innovation;
• Encourage civic engagement and empowerment and more inclusive governance.