About my Work

Blog & weblink of the week

Blogs I Follow

Datalinks of the Week

Governance Maps

Selected Papers

Some Brief Articles

Some Sites I Like

Aid Effectiveness

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Empowering people through Web 3.0 + Gen Y + m-governance

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

As the Fortune Brainstorm Tech near Silicon Valley was getting going last week, I contributed a blog entry on ‘Governance-on-the-Go’, or ‘GonGo’, emphasizing the need to move away from static  ‘e-government’ towards the highly mobile citizen becoming center stage in the next phase of IT interface with governance.  The blog entry and the contributions I made during the BrainstormTech drew some […]

‘Governance-on-the-Go’, or GonGo: the citizen at the center of an IT-enabled governance breakthrough?

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

I am now at the Fortune BrainstormTech, which aims to relate innovations in technology to larger world problems it can solve.  The event just started, featuring fascinating evening panels with tech leaders (here).  One of the sessions I will co-lead tomorrow, with Ross Mayfield of Socialtext, is on governance.  In this forthcoming interactive lab we will try to advance the […]

Democracy and Development: Rejecting the Extremes

Friday, July 18th, 2008

     We recently released the new Governance Matters study, with its accompanying set of Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI),  covering 212 countries since 1996.  It is no secret that this research project that I started with Aart Kraay over a decade ago is not uncontroversial, having generated  debate among academics, some government officials, and within the World Bank.  The data […]

What we talk about when we talk about governance

Wednesday, May 28th, 2008

The word “governance” was made up by the donors.  In most countries I have worked in there is no satisfactory translation for the word governance.  Indonesians sometimes use the expression “tata pemerintahan yang baik” but that’s such a mouthful that most people, regardless of how little English they actually know, end up just sprinkling the […]

‘Governance Matters’: A new blog on governance at the World Bank

Monday, May 26th, 2008

     With the just launched ‘Governance Matters’ blog, the World Bank has now fully joined the governance blogosphere.  The idea was afoot for many months. There was initial pushback by a few higher ups.  But support from many quarters and persistence prevailed, helped by the growing recognition of the importance of blogging in today’s world.  And this personal blog I have hosted for a […]

Human Rights, Aid Effectiveness, and Development: a few findings for debate today, and tomorrow…

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

     Today, May 15th, an initiative called Bloggers Unite for Human Rights, was launched. The international NGO on Human Rights, Amnesty International, is partnering with BlogCatalog.com, the bloggers’ social network, so to raise global social awareness on this important issue.  Bloggers around the world are being asked to post about human rights.  Hundreds of postings […]

World Press Freedom Day (and a few long nights…?)

Saturday, May 3rd, 2008

     Today is World Press Freedom Day.  Timely.  Because the goal of having a free press around the world remains elusive.  About two-thirds of the countries in the world (and almost three-quarter of developing countries) do not have a free press, according to Freedom House.  And there is no evidence that on average there has been a significant […]

Blogging responsibly for Good Governance: does the market work?

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

     Last couple of blog entries where on blogging and good governance, the first focused on IFIs, the second on countries and governments, providing recent illustrations from Africa.  
     In fact the Christian Science Monitor (CSM) recently had an interesting article which called blogging the ‘Africans’ newest form of dissent’.  Like in my previous blog entry, this article also referred to […]

Blogging for governance: on countries and governments

Tuesday, April 29th, 2008

     In my last blog entry a couple of days ago, I discussed the importance of watchdog NGOs for IFI accountability and transparency, and also gave a list of some NGOs that blog, and of some that do not.  Yet nowadays blogging is also of paramount importance for making governments and their actions more transparent and […]

Blogging for Transparency & Good Governance: on IFIs

Saturday, April 26th, 2008

      Blogs are playing an increasingly important role for improved governance.  Blogs do not face the restraints of commercial print media.  The blogosphere is a planet apart from traditional PR departments of public institutions, enabling citizens to share unfiltered information, expose misdeeds, and freely express views.  Blogs help make governments and public institutions more accountable.  In real time. 
     Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) were also involved during the […]

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