Anti-corruption Efforts in National ICT Policies

Abstract : Many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa suffer from endemic corruption, which disrupts development efforts. Although ICTs is no magic wand, several studies indicate that ICT can serve as an important tool for combatting corruption by increasing transparency, and enable citizens to hold public officials accountable. Anti-corruption efforts are however dependent on strong political will and rule of law to be successful. A policy typically contains description of government intentions formulated into concrete objectives, as well as the rationale behind government targets. Furthermore, policies guide programmatic responses. The aim of this study is to explore how ICTs’ anti-corruption potential have been understood at the policy level over time in ICT policies from nine Sub-Saharan African countries between 2000 and 2018. The study concludes that although there are signs of a growing understanding of ICTs as a multi-purpose tool for anti-corruption towards the end of the period, most policies fail to produce a comprehensive and explicit narratives as well as statements affirming political will. The policy environment’s development trajectory, albeit positive, thus leaves room for improvement in terms highlighting ICTs potential contributions.