Democracy That Delivers

This episode, part of CIPE's Rapid Response series and hosted by Frank Brown, explores how corporate communication drives the fight against corruption. Guests Nicola Allocca and Mohammed Ahmed share insights from their global work in business integrity, highlighting the importance of culture, behavior, and innovative training like Deloitte's "Dilemma" ethics training program. The discussion covers...

Moments of political change don't last long — and whether they lead to reform depends on who is ready to act. In this episode of Democracy That Delivers , CIPE's Michele Crymes speaks with Cheri-Leigh Erasmus of Accountability Lab about how civil society can seize democratic windows of opportunity. They explore why trust, coordination, and preparedness matter more than speed, how funding constrain...

With Australian Foreign Minister Wong  explaining  that Australia and China "are in a state of permanent contest in the Pacific" what are Australia's priorities in the Pacific, as well as in Southeast Asia? How does Australia engage in creative diplomacy, and how can the United States and Australia reinforce each other's efforts in supporting market-oriented democracy in this critical region? CIPE...

As the emerging democracies of the Pacific Islands grapple with development challenges and geopolitics, the region is attracting greater attention from around the world. CIPE's John Morrell speaks with Andrew J. Harding of the Heritage Foundation about his recent article The Pacific Pivot: An American Strategy for the Pacific Islands , which is Heritage's first-ever report outlining a long-term U....

As part of a special podcast series on Business and Politics in Today's Pacific Islands, CIPE's John Morrell discusses China's growing presence in the Pacific with Paul Barker , Executive Director of the Institute for National Affairs (INA) in Papua New Guinea. INA is the leading independent policy think tank in PNG, and is among the most influential thought leaders in the Pacific region. Paul dis...

As Samoa prepares for a historic election this August, and as the country's economy emerges from the pandemic, CIPE's John Morrell sits down with Sam Saili, President of the Samoan Chamber of Commerce and CEO of SkyEye Pacific, a technology company providing innovative solutions for the Pacific. Sam discusses the state of the Samoan economy and business climate, the work of the Chamber, and he wal...

A key driver of the modern increase in global entrepreneurship is the increasing participation of women in sectors that were once inaccessible to them. This Global Entrepreneurship Week, CIPE's Elena Ratoi sits down with Arijeta Pajaziti Qerimi, a trailblazer for women in Kosovo's energy sector. Together, they discuss how Arijeta's recent partnership with CIPE's Center for Women's Economic Empower...

Parliamentary elections in Sri Lanka follow the September selection of a new president and are expected to put the country on a new course. What might that look like? Sarrah Sammoon, CIPE's field coordinator in the country, joins Regional Director John Morrell to exchange insights on the economic and political situation in Sri Lanka leading up to the November 14 elections, including the role of th...

CIPE's own Sousena Tefera, Senior Program Manager with the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation, hosts a discussion from Blantyre, Malawi, with key industry professionals McWilliams Mhone, Griffin Kamanga, and Mavuto Zabula. They explore the transformative impact of a new training program for clearing agents, which aims to professionalize the industry and enhance compliance with trade regulation...

In this episode of the  Democracy that Delivers podcast, Frank Brown, Director for the Anti-Corruption and Governance Center (ACGC), is joined by Cristina Ritter, Head of Governance and Anti-Corruption at the UN Global Compact (UNGC), in a discussion on the UNGC resolution and how it has served as a vital tool to bring together governments and the private sector in 190 countries to combat global c...

Contemporary anti-corruption work has moved on from the old model defined by the public-sector directives and towards a new system of public-private collaboration. Our guest Viviane Schiavi sits at this critical intersection in her work with CIPE's valuable partner, the International Chamber of Commerce. Listen along as she shares first-hand knowledge of the present and future state of anti-corrup...

Last year, Poland held extraordinarily consequential parliamentary elections where the conservative Law and Justice party (PiS) lost its majority for the first time since 2015. Against this backdrop, CIPE supported a new project, " The Rule of Law – Our Future " through the  Institute for Private Enterprise and Democracy (IPED)  based in Warsaw between July 2023 to January 2024. As part of the  Fr...

Beginning in November of 2013, then President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych withdrew from a long-desired and promised EU trade agreement in the interest of consolidating a kleptocratic regime with Russia. The events ignited a series of both violent and non-violent large-scale protests in Kyiv, spanning many months. The protests, named 'Euromaidan' shifted the tide in Ukrainian politics and represe...

In 2018, widespread protests dislodged a decades-long kleptocratic regime in Armenia. Known as the Velvet Revolution, these protests represented a culmination of decades of civil society organization and activism and the first surge of revolutionary action against Serzh Sargsyan following his attempt to cling to power.   In this episode of Collectively Combating Kleptocracy , Gayane Abrahamyan, an...

In April 2008, contested election results and alleged electoral fraud in Moldova triggered public protests and political turmoil between activists and state authorities. Eventually, the Communist Party of then-President Vladimir Voronin was replaced it with a coalition called the Alliance for European Integration, which pushed for the implementation of a pro-EU coalition government. The term "Twit...

The 1Malaysia Development Berhard scandal (1MDB Scandal) is known   as one of the world's most prolific financial scandals. With billions lost as a consequence of fraudulent activity by a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund, 1MDB, the scandal saw a huge backlash from Malaysian citizens, the media, and civil society organisations alike. In this episode, P. Gunasegaram, an Independent Journalist and aut...

In April of 2015, a telephone wiretap exposed Guatemala's then-President Otto Pérez Molina, his Vice President Roxana Baldetti, and and other high-ranking officials in the tax and customs administration as having been part of a kleptocratic network involving fraud in customs revenues. The La Línea case, a reference to the wiretap, is known as one of the most high-profile corruption cases in the co...

CIPE's Asia Director speaks with two young professionals in Bangladesh to learn their perspectives and first-hand accounts of the political crisis currently unfolding in the country. Civic unrest sparked by university student protests in June led to the fall of a government barely a month later, and the man who is perhaps Bangladesh's most famous citizen is now the head of an interim government. W...

Ahead of the annual FEDN conference, we invited two of our FEDN members to discuss opportunities and challenges to democratic institutions in the Asia-Pacfic region. CIPE's Tamari Dzotsenidze hosts Reiner Heufers of the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies and Robin Sitoula of the Samriddhi Foundation in Nepal for a lively conversation on present and potential future of South Asian democracies. Li...

This episode of the Democracy That Delivers podcast focuses on the SAHA Project, a CIPE initiative aimed at improving healthcare governance in Tunisia. Dr. Fatma Habboubi, the project manager, explains how the project, funded by the U.S. Department of State, seeks to enhance the healthcare system through legal and regulatory reforms. These reforms include clarifying the organization of public heal...

This Democracy that Delivers episode delves into the complexities of the investment landscape in Argentina. Lesly Rubio, Senior Program Manager of CIPE's Latin American Programs, is joined by the Center for the Implementation of Public Policies Promoting Equity and Growth (CIPPEC) Senior Program Manager, Demian Gonzalez, and the American Chamber (AmCham) in Argentina Public Affairs Director, Marin...

Our episode toda y focuses on anti-corruption messaging: what messaging has looked like in the past, the challenges and risks it poses, and novel approaches that could yield better results . Holly Sandalow, Program Officer at CIPE's Anti-Corruption & Governance Center, sits down with Caryn Peiffer, Associate Professor in International Public Policy and Governance at the University of Bristol, and...

Episode Description This episode's Democracy that Delivers podcast focuses on how individual entrepreneurs and policy professionals are using business integrity and compliance programs to deepen trade ties in North America. Michele Crymes, deputy director of CIPE's Anti-Corruption & Governance Center (ACGC), sits with former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Tony Wayne , and Gabriela Blanco, an anti-corr...