WHAT WE DO


ADVOCACY AND SENSITIZATION PROGRAMS

BTI places great emphasis on advocacy programs at different levels. As such, BTI has played a critical role towards creating topical awareness on corruption, making people understand the causes and impacts of corruption, legal frameworks, and their rights and responsibilities in combating corruption, in particular their basic rights and duties to demand greater transparency and accountability in the delivery of public services.

ADVOCACY AND LEGAL ADVICE PROGRAM (ALAP)

Corruption is perceived to be steadily on the rise and there is a high level of acceptance of corruption among Bhutanese and low level of willingness to report corruption (NCBS 2016, BTI). Additionally, the report reveals that access to justice is the biggest challenge confronting the country as per 95% of the respondents.

Although people have the desire to contribute to the fight against corruption by reporting cases of corruption to a public anti-corruption institution, they often lose the will power to do so due to their discomfort in dealing with such institutions or lack of easy access to such institutions or in fear of the backlashes that they may have to face. Thus, although people know about the occurrence of corruption in the environment that they live in or associate with, they seldom report it to the relevant institution. Therefore, to provide complaint redressal mechanisms (legal advice and follow-up complaints) for the witnesses and victims of corrupt practices, inform citizens about their legal rights and encourage them to access justice, BTI implemented the Advocacy and Legal Advice Program (ALAP) in Bhutan in 2018 with the following objectives

  1. Assist and give advice to the citizens who have witnessed or been a victim of corrupt practices
  2. Provide complaint redressal mechanisms (provide legal advice and follow-up complaints)
  3. Identify corruption hotspots in the country
  4. Inform citizens about their legal rights/process/system and encourage them to access justice and
  5. Advocate and educate the public on their rights, duties and responsibilities to counter corruption.

So far the Advocacy and Legal Advice Center (ALAC) has been instituted in Thimphu and in Gelephu. Both centers continue to receive cases to this day.

RESEARCH

Corruption anywhere is a clandestine process. Therefore, to learn about its nature and magnitude, its actors and its impact on life and livelihood of ordinary citizens, research is instrumental. As such, BTI has conducted numerous research studies on different themes such as corruption, integrity, governance and public service delivery. BTI conducts National Corruption Barometer Survey (NCBS) every three years to determine the level and trend of corruption in Bhutan. The 1st NCBS was conducted in 2016 followed by the NCBS 2020. We share the findings of the research studies with different stakeholders to discuss, dialogue and push for policy interventions.

Youth Engagement and Support

Youth comprise of more than half of our total population according to the population and housing census report 2017. BTI is committed to make every youth a leader. We have been working with diverse groups of youth in infusing integrity and fundamental human values of trust and honesty. BTI will collaborate with various institutes within and outside to promote youth engagement and support promotion of transparency, accountability and integrity.

Strengthening Citizen’s Participation in Local Governance

Informing and empowering public with education, access to information and skill acquisition has been one of the priority areas of BTI. Towards this, BTI implemented Social Accountability programs in few selected Local Governments since 2015. BTI will work closely with the relevant government agencies towards institutionalizing Social Accountability in the Local Governments.

BRING CORRUPTION UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT

Bhutan Transparency Initiative will act as a reference institution to put corruption under the spotlight by increasing transparency, integrity and accountability through the provision of policy-oriented research, development of training tools and facilitation of policy dialogue.