This Anti-Corruption Helpdesk brief was produced in response to a query from a U4 Partner Agency. The U4 Helpdesk is operated by Transparency International in collaboration with the U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre based at the Chr. Michelsen Institute.
Query
Could you please provide information about concrete success stories of complaint mechanisms at the local level in the context of developing countries, specifically relating to service delivery.
Purpose
The answer will be used to inform research on local complaint mechanisms in Benin.
Content
Good practices in complaint mechanisms
Examples of local government complaint mechanisms in developing countries
References
Summary
Complaint mechanisms are valuable tools to increase accountability in governments, businesses and civil society organisations. They offer citizens avenues to provide feedback and submit complaints to these bodies in order to improve their services.
In the last two decades, increasing efforts to tackle corruption, as well as a growing tendency towards decentralisation of government services to the local level, have seen the supply of and demand for complaint mechanisms rise considerably across the developing world. There are a number of key principles to take into account when designing and implementing a complaint mechanism at the local level, such as transparency, independence, accountability, accessibility, safety and user-friendliness. In particular, ensuring citizens have access to the mechanism, guaranteeing user safety and providing effective redress a
re essential elements for success.
Authors
Iñaki Albisu Ardigó, Transparency International, [email protected]Reviewers
Marie Chêne, Transparency International, [email protected]Date
16/12/2014
