Integrity Idol: Celebrating Heroes in Nepali Public Service via a Reality TV Contest

Three years ago, Accountability Lab Nepal developed a TV show through which honest government officials were filmed, with citizens watching the episodes and voting for their favorites. It was a surprise hit, taking the country by storm- with tens of thousands of votes being cast for the finalists. This season’s grand finale is yet to come, but the Nepalese people have embraced the competition again, voting in record numbers through SMS and online for their favorite civil servants. The campaign brings Nepalis from across the country into a conversation about what it means to be a person of integrity. It [...]

2016-12-27T00:00:00+00:0027th December 2016|

Accountability Lab: Promoting Good Government, Fighting Corruption

By: Marc Gunther. This article was originally published on Nonprofits Chronicles.  In the US, Integrity Idol might not qualify as must-see TV. The TV-and-radio show showcases five government officials, nominated by their fellow citizens, who are known for their honesty. People vote for their favorite civil servant via text messages or online, and the winner is crowned in a ceremony in the national capital. In Nepal, though, Integrity Idol is a hit. Last year, reached an estimated 3 million viewers (10 percent of the population), generated 10,000 votes and celebrated the work of a education reformer named Gyan Mani Nepal, who cleaned house [...]

2016-12-15T00:00:00+00:0015th December 2016|

Integrity idol: Liberian reality TV show celebrates ethics

By: Kieron Monks, CNN. This article was originally published by CNN. A new reality TV craze is sweeping Liberia, with tens of thousands voting for their heroes and an intense debate surrounding their merits. But the recipients of their votes are not singing ballads or performing stunts. They are checking school registers and fighting ebola. Integrity Idol is a show with a purpose: to celebrate the honesty of the best public servants, while embarrassing the corruption of the worst. Local heroes The show, now in its second year in Liberia, is open to all government employees -- who make up [...]

2016-12-05T00:00:00+00:005th December 2016|

The Perspective of a Visual Storytelling Fellow

By: Brittany Wait, Accountability Lab Visual Storytelling Fellow in Nepal I’m a master’s student in photography and film at Syracuse University. Thanks to a partnership through my college and the Accountability Lab based out of Washington, D.C., I spent the summer in Nepal on a visual storytelling fellowship. Thanks to my mentor Ken Harper, with the Center for Global Engagement at SU, I was selected to join the team. While there, I worked independently on projects, setting my own deadlines with the mission to add value to their efforts. Not only did I feel I was a value to the [...]

2016-11-03T00:00:00+00:003rd November 2016|

Media Stakeholders Stress Accountability and Independence

By: Gbatemah Senah. This article was originally published by The Bush Chicken. At a recent discussion on the role of the media in society, several media stakeholders have stressed the need for accountability and independence within Liberia’s media industry. Serving as panelists was Lawrence Yealue, Country Representative of Accountability Lab Liberia; Jefferson Krua, founder of The Bush Chicken; and Zubin Cooper, founder of Omuahtee African Media. Lawrence Yealue II, Coordinator of Accountability Lab Liberia. Photo: Gbatemah Senah Yealue said in order to have an accountable media, practitioners must have the requisite training and capacity to drive their passion. According to him, training [...]

2016-10-20T00:00:00+00:0020th October 2016|

Let the young people tell their stories: Accountability through Visual Storytelling

By: Surath Giri, Co-Founder and Director of Onion Films Nepal and an Accountability Lab 'Accountapreneur'.  It all started with a conversation over a cup of coffee in October 2013. Narayan Adhikari was trying to build an organization to promote accountability and good governance in Nepal by catalyzing local change makers. Govinda and I were creating a network of young, independent filmmakers by training aspiring filmmakers in visual storytelling. We discussed each other's work and the potential for collaboration. "How about teaching your young filmmakers about accountability and encouraging them to make short movies on related issues?" Narayan proposed. "We can provide you the necessary [...]

2016-10-03T00:00:00+00:003rd October 2016|

Liberia Film Institute graduates 7th class of aspiring film-makers

By: Robin Dopoe Jr. This article was originally published by the Daily Observer.   Following months of intense training, the Liberia Film Institute in collaboration with Accountability Lab has graduated three students from it Seven Cycle Class. The three students were trained in technical film making skills with emphasis on issues like democracy, citizenship, and the importance of voting. During the graduation ceremony, the students screened movies on issues that deal with voters moving from one location to another to register for money; and the importance of excising their democracy right through voting. Though all the four student made films are [...]

2016-09-22T00:00:00+00:0022nd September 2016|

Music Post-Ebola: Artist Amaze says Hipco Songs Made Tremendous Impact

By: Heather Maxwell. This blog was originally published by Voice of America.   Music had a big role to play both during and in the aftermath of the West Africa Ebola epidemic. I found that out when I visited Monrovia in August. A lot of artists wrote songs about the personal experiences people had facing the disease. Henry Amazin’ Toe, a.k.a Amaze, is a well-established hipco artist who composed and recorded such songs.I met Amaze several times during my stay in the Liberian capital. The first time was during a group interview I held in Mamba Point with other artists (Teddy Ride and Margaret [...]

2016-09-21T00:00:00+00:0021st September 2016|

They came for the music and left with the message

By: Heather Gilberds On Saturday, September 10th, Accountability Lab Liberia’s work attracted hundreds of young people to a town hall in Kakata, the capital city of Margibi county, where they gathered to listen to the latest songs from their favorite Hip Co artists. Hip Co music is uniquely Liberian—a form of hip hop that emerged in the 1980's but gained popularity among youth in post-war Liberia. Hip Co artists rap in “Colloqua”, the colloquial form of Liberian English, and the songs have a political bent, describing social ills, lamenting the causes of poverty, or calling out corrupt politicians and public [...]

2016-09-19T00:00:00+00:0019th September 2016|

Nuwakot: Land Of Dreamers And Healers

By: Brittany Wait, Visual Storytelling Fellow in Nepal Walk with me... ...through Kharanitar, a rural village in the Nuwakot district of Nepal still rebuilding after the 2015 earthquakes. We spent two days working alongside Nepali nonprofit, Visible Impact, educating 15 local girls on accountability and activism. One of our accountapreneurs, Medha Sharma, its president and CEO, and her associate Sharmila Acharya, took Samita and I along with them. After an eventful ride, in which got stuck in mud and had to move boulders from a recent flash flood out of the way, we arrived. There, we met our colleague Suresh Chand and [...]

2016-09-09T00:00:00+00:009th September 2016|
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