School of Human Sciences and Education

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Browsing School of Human Sciences and Education by Author "Coetzee, Johannes Jacobus"

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    Comparative best practices to manage corruption
    (Journal for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, 2016) Coetzee, Johannes Jacobus
    During the last two decades debates about corruption and ways to contain it have acquired a new intensity and concentrated focus. There are increasing attempts to construct a global framework of best practices to manage corruption. Because corruption is a systemic challenge that needs a long-term approach to manage, it is worthwhile focusing on best practices that have proved to be the most durable (most sustainable). Such practices that demonstrate elements of systemic reform include reforms in two newly industrialised and two developed countries. In all four cases there was no master plan and reform evolved over time. Ongoing successes reinforced the momentum of change, and these successes became institutionalised in government processes and the culture of participative governance.
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    The impact of corruption on development: a comparative developmental perspective
    (Nawa: journal of language and communication, 2015-06-01) Coetzee, Johannes Jacobus
    Corruption has attracted increased and intensive consideration in discourse on development in recent years. Beyond being an ethical problem, corruption is also a governance and development challenge. To contextualise the impact of corruption on development, a comparative analysis of the outstanding development characteristics of developing as opposed to developed countries of 16 internationally accepted indices has been conducted. From analysing the indices, overall patterns emerge that demonstrate that developing countries such as Namibia and Kenya, with relatively low scores in terms of development indicators, present more obstructions to development that act as co-producers of corruption compared to a developed country such as Norway, which has fewer such obstructions. Such co-producers and their interaction increase the level and complexity of corruption as well as magnify its impact on development. As the drivers of corruption take different forms, emerging obstructions are less dominant in developed countries and, given all other possible co-producers, corruption can be managed more easily compared to the situation in developing countries. To change a culture of corruption requires that the environment must be developed to make problems impossible to arise and to dissolve corruption as a complex problem situation. Keywords: Corruption; development; perceptions; co-producers.
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    The Role of the Private Sector in Tackling Corruption
    (Institute for Public Policy Research, 2018-04) Coetzee, Johannes Jacobus
    Corruption in the private sector is part of the total level of corruption in a country. It is necessary to investigate the level of corruption in Namibia in comparison with other countries. One of the most popular indices used by investors to provide them with an indication of the level of corruption in a country as a decision-making indicator for investment purposes is the Corruption Perception Index of Transparency International (TI). The TI Index on corruption and good governance is compiled annually per country. Countries are classified as open economies or closed economies. Countries are rated out of 10 – with 10 being a perfect score, indicating no corruption and perfect good governance. The problem with international indices, however, is that they are simplistic indices and do not perceive and tackle corruption from a holistic or systemic perspective.
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    Systematic corruption and corrective change management strategies: A study of the co-producers of systematic corruption and its negative impact on socio-economic development
    (2012-12-12) Coetzee, Johannes Jacobus
    The focus of the study is the socio-economic impact of systemically corrupt institutions on developing countries. The unit of analysis is systemic corruption. The study seeks to make a contribution towards the understanding of, and insight into, corruption in private and public institutions. Corruption is a subsystem of the social system that is embedded in the economy, politics, science and technology, ethics, and aesthetics. Systemic corruption is not only an impairment of integrity, virtue and moral principle(s), but a departure from the original purpose, processes, structure, governance and context of systems created with the intention to be pure and correct and to enable development. Systemic corruption is destructive for development. Corruption is a social pathology. As a systemic problem situation, corruption does not have root causes, but co-producers. These co-producers are obstructions to first-order-development of an institution and society. If these first-order-co-producers interact, e.g. when marginal groups are powerless and do not have any hope of being accommodated in formal society (that is synonymous with a better life) the impact thereof co-produces second-order-problems, e.g. alienation and polarisation. Alienated people organise themselves and for survival create their own values and culture that contradict those of formal society. For example, organised criminal groups are not accommodated within the formal structures of society; they are labelled, feared and detested. Marginal groups use the negative impact they experience during alienation and polarisation, i.e. absolute, relative, and total deprivation from goods, services, knowledge, influence, norms and identity, to justify their corrupt practices. Corruption cannot be solved with linear solutions, but should be addressed by a systemic approach, e.g. system dynamics, soft - and complex systems. This approach aims to change the „culture of corruption‟ by changing the environment that contributes to corruption, i.e. by eliminating programmes that co-produce corruption, by developing moral and transformational leaders and role models, and by developing innovative, transparent and accountable institutions. This dissertation is primarily a hermeneutic study. Exploratory research provided insight into and comprehension of the co-producers and impacts of corruption. Although a substantial volume of literature on corruption exists, very few employ a systemic framework that provides a holistic understanding of corruption and its relationship with other variables within the context of the developing world. The relationship with these variables is important to gain an understanding of the complexity of corruption. Corruption can be a concept, a condition, a manifestation, and a co-producer that contribute towards poverty and under-development. Corruption can also be a co-impact on poverty and under-development. The multidimensional dynamics of corruption to take on various „masks‟ make it an elusive phenomenon. As a complex subsystem, corruption takes on a life of its own that is self sustaining - corruption strengthens corruption. Corruption‟s co-producers, various manifestations and devastating impacts can at best be understood in terms of contextualising these from a systemic and complex system perspective. The dissertation offers a conceptual framework for identifying systemically corrupt institutions. Strategies were developed for change management to transform such institutions to international best practices. These strategies are based on the principles of good governance, institutional capital and trust, quality personnel, a culture of discipline, and sustainability. The concept of „quality‟ is central to the creation of social/institutional capital, an integrated institution and also in the control and management of these strategies. Strategies and processes were developed for a complete institutional change and transformation, by creating institutions that enhance participation, parity, organisation, adaptation and innovation. These strategies were developed by integration, e.g. developing social capital; differentiation, e.g. application of specialised knowledge and skills about procurement; coordination; and control of systemic corruption. For every level of differentiation, a minimum required level of integration is required. Therefore, all strategies „balance‟ opposing developmental aspirations. A discussion of developing countries‟ corruption problem situations, based on examples of real incidents of corruption, illustrates what can be done if reform of people and transformation of systems are applied systemically. Corrective change management strategies were tailored for suiting a unique context, governance, structure, purpose and processes. The discussion assessed the key drivers and key uncertainties with possible directions of how these alternatives can unfold in terms of the Namibian corruption problem situation. Leverage points describe how to implement the most effective containment strategies with the best outcome in the shortest time. Containing strategies include hard, formal and tactical-operational strategies. Dissolving strategies focus on soft, informal and long-term sustainable transformation.