Every citizen has a role to play, but reliable data needed in the fight against corruption Chasing crooked police officers and pestering high level authorities are not the typical pursuits of a 75-year-old grandmother. But Ms. Le Hien Duc, whose efforts to fight corruption were recognized last week by global corruption watchdog Transparency International, is no ordinary Vietnamese citizen.

The Berlin-based group selected her as one of only two winners of its annual Integrity Awards established "to recognise the courage and determination of the many individuals and organisations fighting corruption around the world." In doing so, Transparency said Ms Duc has displayed remarkable courage as she set about tackling corruption at all levels of Vietnamese life, noting in giving the award that, "her respect for authority ends where corruption begins."

Since retiring as a schoolteacher in 1984, Ms Duc has helped ordinary citizens to file complaints and expose everything from small-time bribery to large-scale corruption. Ms. Duc receives four or five complaint letters and dozens of phone calls for help everyday. "People know that I am not a person in authority but they believe that I have a will and they cling to that 'will'," she says.

Viet Nam ranks 123rd of 179 countries in Transparency International's annual Corruption Perceptions Index, a survey of business people and experts. And the Government of Viet Nam regards corruption as a serious issue and has acted. In the last three years alone, it has passed an anti-corruption law, set up provincial anti-corruption steering committees, and broadened the debate on anti-corruption to include civil society organizations.

How effective these anti-corruption efforts are, however, remains a difficult question to answer. Data on corruption is hard to come by. Apart from a 2005 study by the Central Committee of Internal Affairs (CCIA), which only measured the perception of corruption in seven provinces, most other studies have focused on the private sector or are regional or global surveys that include limited information on Viet Nam. There is a lack of data that would allow a comparison of how much or how little progress has been made in curbing corruption over time.

The absence of a monitoring and measurement system means Viet Nam is unable to effectively follow corruption trends, develop more targeted anti-corruption programmes, or draw important policy lessons. To try and fill this critical gap, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), together with the Government Inspectorate and with support from the United Nations Office of Drug Control (UNODC), is beginning to build up an effective monitoring system for corruption. Key to this system will be a system of checks and balances.

The goal is to obtain and make available comparative data which allows the Vietnamese Government and its partners to analyze which anti-corruption measures have worked and which ones have not. In the process, the project aims to support the effective implementation of the 2005 National Anti-Corruption Law and provide valid and reliable data for the anti-corruption strategy currently being drafted.

The project is one of several UNDP initiatives helping Viet Nam deal with the problem of corruption. Through support for legal and public administration reform, development of parliament and civil society, and strengthening of local governance, UNDP is promoting improved transparency, accountability and public participation.

Basing their findings on a report of the Government Inspectorate, the daily newspaper Saigon Giai Phong (Liberated Saigon) reported that the Government uncovered and prosecuted 406 cases of corruption from October 2006 to October 2007. Total losses from these cases are estimated at VND 286 billion (USD 17.88 million), though to date the country has retrieved only VND 70 billion (USD 4.38 million) of this total[1]. The potential benefits to reducing corruption are significant, not only in economic but also in social terms and perhaps most vital is regaining people's trust in the Government.

"Corruption is especially unfortunate when you consider that it hits the most vulnerable, and those who can least afford to pay the hardest," said Ms Setsuko Yamazaki, Country Director of UNDP Vietnam, "Corruption violates basic rights and further marginalizes and excludes those already on the margins of society."

According to the CCIA report, many people find bribery the easiest way to get things done, and corruption of all sorts has become a largely tolerated aspect of daily life. According to the study, only 11 percent of civil servants would decline a bribe or denounce the person offering it, and about 85 percent of civil servants and 78 percent of private sector workers say they are not enthusiastic about fighting corruption because they are afraid of being victimized. This is why the work of individuals like Ms. Duc is so important; it shows the role that ordinary people can play in this national effort.

"This award is a great honour for me and for those affected by corruption, many of whom have contacted me for sympathy and help," Duc said to Agence France Presse after accepting the Integrity Award.

Ms Duc is convinced the battle against corruption will be successful and appreciates the assistance from international organizations, like the United Nations. "The international community has had a positive influence on the fight against corruption here," she says. By providing a baseline to measure and track progress, UNDP hopes it will provide accurate and useful information to the Government and ordinary people to further strengthen the national fight against corruption.

"History shows that Viet Nam has won many wars thanks to its reliance on people. Viet Nam will win its fight against corruption if it relies on its citizens," Ms Duc said. "People have written to me from all over the country offering support and expressing their strong commitment to fighting corruption. I am definitely not the only person of Integrity in Viet Nam."