Corruption Watch

The fifth and final episode of Corruption Watch’s new five-part podcast series on climate governance is now available. In this episode, we discuss what needs to happen for climate change management to benefit those who feel the devastating effects most keenly - the communities on the ground - and for the just transition to be truly just. In this episode we hear from experts and community voices th...

The fourth episode of Corruption Watch’s new five-part podcast series on climate governance is now available. In this episode, the focus is on disaster management and the Disaster Management Act, whose goal is to facilitate a co-ordinated and integrated approach across all levels of government in times of crisis. However, the act has come under increasing scrutiny following devastating floods in K...

This podcast series of five episodes compellingly captures communities’ experiences with climate change and failures in disaster relief by government. This is the third episode, and focuses on the responsible managing of climate-related budgets and projects, weak governance structures hindering the effective implementation of climate policies and community support programs, deficiencies in the Cli...

This podcast series of five episodes compellingly captures communities’ experiences with climate change and failures in disaster relief by government. The second episode considers the just transition and what this means in practical terms. What does a genuine just transition look like? What changes do we need? As with episode 1, this features narration, interviews, explanations, and commentary fro...

This podcast series of five episodes compellingly captures communities’ experiences with climate change and failures in disaster relief by government. The first episode sets the scene with a harrowing first-hand recounting of the Riversands floods of 2024, then goes on to establish the concept and context of climate governance with gripping narration, explanations, and commentary from experts. The...

This podcast series of five episodes compellingly captures communities’ experiences with climate change and failures in disaster relief by government. The first episode sets the scene with a harrowing first-hand recounting of the Riversands floods of 2024, then goes on to establish the concept and context of climate governance with gripping narration, explanations, and commentary from experts. The...

In this third episode, Corruption Watch's executive director Karam Singh sits down with Robyn Pasensie from My Vote Counts and independent candidate Zackie Achmat in a lively discussion and analysis of South Africa's recent elections. The group talks about party funding and sources of campaign money, trends in terms of right and left politics, questionable appointments to parliamentary committees....

In this episode, Corruption Watch executive director Karam Singh is in discussion with Nicki van ‘t Riet, the organisation’s head of Legal and Investigations, and Dan Mafora from the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (CASAC). They discuss Dan’s new book that looks at a variety of issues relating to populism and the judiciary, which in turn informs a broader election dis...

In this first episode, Corruption Watch executive director Karam Singh sits down with Robyn Pasensie from My Vote Counts, to talk us through the reasons this election stands out from those in the past. They discuss new regulations by which parties need to abide, including disclosure of party funding, and we hear how independents are now able to enter the race and what this means for the elections...

As we have established in previous episodes of this moving and thought-provoking series about land corruption in South Africa, poor and marginalised communities have received a raw deal in their quest for inclusion and equality in the land equity dynamic since the dawn of democracy. The stories of beneficiaries told throughout the series are testament to severe hardships, misery, and exclusion, an...

In episode 4 of this important podcast series, the focus is on the living conditions of farmworkers, in particular the beneficiaries of farm worker equity schemes, and how they are consistently denied what is due to them as shareholders. The team held numerous interviews with beneficiaries on various farms in the Western Cape, notably in the Matzikama and Witzenberg areas. Despite the Witzenberg m...

In episode 3 of the series, the CW team delves deeper into the intersection between corruption and human rights abuses in the land sector, exposing the ways in which this manifests and impacts disadvantaged and marginalised groups. The team shares experiences from a field trip earlier this year, where they visited several farming communities in the Western Cape. Their meetings and engagements with...

This episode explores the contentious issue of land in South Africa, and its importance as a critical resource and foundation for sustainable livelihoods, by explaining how the country’s land system works in practice. It canvasses the views of a wide range of stakeholders, from grassroots civil society organisations and activists to individuals on the left and right of the political spectrum. It c...

This episode addresses the broad topic of land in South Africa, its history and legacy under apartheid leading up to the current day, and the work of Corruption Watch in relation to land and corruption.  Listeners will hear a summary of the learnings from the first phase of the Land and Corruption in Africa (LCA) project, also referencing the December 2019 report Unearthing Corruption in the Land...

Corruption impacts access to land in South Africa and the powerful perpetuate it in this sector. Join Corruption Watch in exploring this critical topic in its podcast series: Land and Corruption: Story of the marginalised.

There is a well-worn phrase that you get the leaders that you deserve. This is as true in South Africa as anywhere else. In this podcast, Corruption Watch takes us on a journey of over seven years of active campaigning for greater transparency in the appointment processes of leaders of state-owned enterprises, institutions in the criminal justice system, and those established under chapters 9 and...

When you hear the word “procurement” do your eyes glaze over? Why should we care about it? In fact, public procurement – the process by which a government contracts for goods, service and infrastructure for the good of all society – is at the heart of the fight against corruption. For decades now, South Africa’s public procurement system has been deeply dysfunctional and relentlessly abused, costi...

There is a need for greater transparency and accountability in the public sector in order for the public to understand how funds are being managed and spent, how decisions are made and why. In this episode, the young people being interviewed call on the government to manage public resources effectively and efficiently, and to put strong measures in place to maximize service delivery, while minimiz...

The Corruption Watch team discusses our work with whistle-blowers and some of the lessons we have learned throughout our 10-year journey in the anti-corruption space. The team explains our approaches and strategies to fighting corruption and explores other interventions needed to eradicate corruption.

Young people share their day-to-day experiences of corruption and their thoughts on the culture of corruption – from its roots to the current reality. They unpack the impact of corruption on the most vulnerable groups and ways in which young people can get more involved in the fight against corruption. 

Young people express their views and understanding of corruption as well its impact on young South Africans. Furthermore, the podcast unpacks the role of Corruption Watch in the anti-corruption space, its 10-year journey as a civil society organization advocating for transparency and accountability.

The 2022 Analysis of Corruption Trends (ACT) podcast unpacks the many ways in which corruption undermines and erodes fundamental human rights. The whistle-blower reports received by the Corruption Watch between January and June 2022 highlight how public and private sector corruption persistently obstructs access to basic human rights. This emphasises that corruption is not a victimless crime, but...

The traumatic experience of a whistle-blower at the hands of the South African Police Service (Saps) provides the opening sequence of this podcast that places police corruption under the spotlight. Melusi Ncala, senior researcher at Corruption Watch, paints a picture of where South Africa stands in relation to graft in the police sector, and looks at ongoing efforts of social justice and civil soc...

Local government elections are set to take place on 1 November 2021, and it is important that citizens cast their vote to ensure they get the best representatives. Local government is a sphere of government that is very important to people lives – it is where people interact directly with officials and receive basic services. Listen to our conversation with independent candidates - Tshiamo Malatji...

The Analysis of Corruption Trends report is a story of the whistle-blower cases that were received by Corruption Watch (CW) between the beginning of January 2021 and the end of June 2021.  Join Melusi Ncala on a journey of whistle-blowers’ resilience and bravery as told by CW's head of stakeholder relations and campaigns Kavisha Pillay and senior investigator Zanele Mwale.