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This Problem Analysis is a review of the efficacy and opportunities for using social norm and behaviour change (SNBC) approaches to combat illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and other natural resource-related corruption. Behavioural science is a rich and expansive field that has received prominent coverage in recent years for the promise it offers as a foundational yet underutilised approach to achieving biodiversity conservation. Extensive literature shows how SNBC initiatives can help combat diverse corruption problems, although for those related to natural resource management the evidence for doing so is sparse. This report synthesises the available information and suggests the next steps to redress this current lack of evidence. It seeks to: Understand what SNBC approaches might or might not work in fighting corruption. Identify entry points for designing SNBC interventions that can effectively reduce corruption related to IWT. This Analysis has been produced in association with the Targeting Natural Resource Corruption (TNRC) project. The TNRC project is working to improve biodiversity outcomes by helping practitioners to address the threats posed by corruption to wildlife, fisheries and forests. TNRC harnesses existing knowledge, generates new evidence, and supports innovative policy and practice for more effective anti-corruption programming. Learn more at tnrcproject.org. This publication is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the United States Government, or individual TNRC consortium members.

Corruption is frequently associated with money alone and the behaviours of a few individual “bad apples” operating in otherwise healthy governance systems. This is too simplistic. As the latest research shows, including research in Tanzania and Uganda on which this Policy Brief is based, corruption is a networked phenomenon. This Policy Brief explains what this means and its implications for anti-corruption practice. When ordinary citizens and business people face problems, like constrained access to public services or an uneven playing field, they invest time, effort and resources in building informal networks. Held together by personal connections and corrupt payments, these informal networks are a problem-solving mechanism. They allow members – such as business people, other citizens and public officials – to pursue a variety of goals. The networks aid in easing access to public services, for example, or helping a business to run smoothly, or securing business opportunities with the government. Informal networks can be leveraged to speed up long and complicated permit processes or exploit weaknesses in formal tender processes to obtain undue access to contracts. When red tape is used by public officials to extort bribes from service users, informal networks can help manage and overcome these demands. In contexts in which these informal networks are widespread, the research shows that conventional anti-corruption measures, such as introducing more regulations, policies and controls, can actually backfire and increase corruption. Breaking this self-reinforcing cycle of networked corruption requires a shift in thinking and approaches: Focusing on networked corruption as opposed to individual corrupt behaviours. Tackling corruption both from the demand and the supply side by addressing inefficiencies and weaknesses in public systems that cause problems for ordinary citizens and business people. This may make it less likely that they will resort to corruption through informal networks to overcome the public service weaknesses. Harnessing informal networks for anti-corruption objectives. This includes leveraging new insights into social norms and networks and establishing Collective Action initiatives to better target the underlying drivers of corruption. This Policy Brief presents findings from a research project entitled “Harnessing informality: Designing anti-corruption network interventions and strategic use of legal instruments”, funded by UK Aid as part of the Global Integrity Anti-Corruption Evidence Programme (GI-ACE).

Tissue engineering is a promising methodology to produce advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs). We have developed personalized tissue engineered veins (P-TEV) as an alternative to autologous or synthetic vascular grafts utilized in reconstructive vein surgery. Our hypothesis is that individualization through reconditioning of a decellularized allogenic graft with autologous blood will prime the tissue for efficient recellularization, protect the graft from thrombosis, and decrease the risk of rejection. In this study, P-TEVs were transplanted to vena cava in pig, and the analysis of three veins after six months, six veins after 12 months and one vein after 14 months showed that all P-TEVs were fully patent, and the tissue was well recellularized and revascularized. To confirm that the ATMP product had the expected characteristics one year after transplantation, gene expression profiling of cells from P-TEV and native vena cava were analyzed and compared by qPCR and sequencing. The qPCR and bioinformatics analysis confirmed that the cells from the P-TEV were highly similar to the native cells, and we therefore conclude that P-TEV is functional and safe in large animals and have high potential for use as a clinical transplant graft. CC BY 3.0First published 13 Apr 2023Joakim.hakansson@ri.seThis study was supported by Vinnova project CAMP (contract no. 2017-02130), a common call by VINNOVA and Vetenskapsrådet: Biologcal pharmaseuticals (Dnr 2017-02983), by University of Skövde under grants from the Swedish Knowledge Foundation [#2016-0330, #2020-0014] and Västra Götalandsregionen (consultant check). The company VERIGRAFT AB holds a patent on peripheral whole blood perfusion of decellularized tissues and did also finance the project. We want to acknowledge the staff at the Department of Experimental Biomedicine at Gothenburg University. The swine studies in Spain were conducted by the ICTS ‘NANBIOSIS’, specifically Units 21, 22, and 24 of the CCMIJU. Graphical Abstract image created with BioRender.com.

This Policy Brief distils recommendations for Collective Action practitioners based on empirical insights on certain forms of corruption involving private-sector actors. Field research carried out in Tanzania and Uganda produced detailed case studies that show how informal networks link private and public sector actors to pursue common illicit goals, such as gaining an unfair business advantage, avoiding a sanction, decreasing taxes owed or jumping the queue at the point of delivery of public services. Corruption, most often bribery, is the currency that works to cement and nurture those networks. This Policy Brief is based on that research and a series of in-depth interviews with Collective Action practitioners working in Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America. The goal is to extract insights from what we have learned about the networks that fuel corruption and discuss implications for anti-corruption Collective Action initiatives.

Behaviour change interventions aimed at reducing the social acceptability of wildlife trafficking are an important part of efforts to prevent wildlife crime. This policy brief summarises lessons learned about how to develop and frame effective messages in the context of these interventions, based on field work conducted in Uganda. A key first step is to narrowly identify the right target audience. While a general public awareness campaign may have its merits, it may be more effective to focus on those identified as most vulnerable to participating in wildlife trafficking, namely young men, those that live around wildlife trafficking hotspots and those involved in trade. Second, it appears most promising to formulate messages that challenge narrow utilitarian perceptions of wildlife by highlighting the hidden costs of trafficking and its negative impact on the economy and the environment. Messages that focus on legal risks should showcase successes in detection and sanctions, especially in a context in which impunity is perceived to be high. Other messages that seek to challenge the overvalued benefits of engaging in wildlife trafficking in relation to wealth and social status should be carefully nuanced to avoid rejection. Third, how we frame such messages is equally important. The research suggests that appealing to social identity and highlighting personal consequences are the most promising frames to adopt. Overall, practitioners are advised to develop and test messages and approaches that are personal and precise. This report was funded by PMI IMPACT, a grant award initiative of Philip Morris International (PMI). In the performance of their research, the authors maintained full independence from PMI. The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of PMI. Neither PMI, nor any of its affiliates, nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained herein.

This policy brief summarises the main findings from extensive field research on the drivers, facilitators and strategies of wildlife trafficking in Uganda. It translates the insights described in Working Paper 33: A worm’s-eye view of wildlife trafficking in Uganda into recommendations for practitioners and policymakers. The research shows that individuals engaging in the first stages of the trading route are driven predominantly by aspirations of wealth to overcome socio-economic hardships. This is reinforced by stereotypes that depict wildlife trade as benign and legitimate. The trafficking is also facilitated by weak governance systems that generate high levels of corruption and impunity. In such a context, opportunistic strategies sustain the operations of organised transnational wildlife trafficking networks, not least because of the availability of a ready pool of accomplices who can be co-opted to facilitate the effective consolidation, concealment and corrupt cover of high volumes of wildlife products. Policymakers who wish to reduce the attractiveness of Uganda for organised wildlife trafficking networks are advised to consider these factors when designing their interventions. This report was funded by PMI IMPACT, a grant award initiative of Philip Morris International (PMI). In the performance of their research, the authors maintained full independence from PMI. The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of PMI. Neither PMI, nor any of its affiliates, nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained herein.

This Working Paper is a key output of the Basel Institute's Green Corruption programme, a multi-disciplinary engagement that targets environmental degradation through tested anti-corruption, asset recovery and governance methods. The research is funded by PMI Impact as part of a wider project on intelligence-led on financial crime in illegal wildlife trade (IWT). The fight against wildlife trafficking is a global one. Wildlife trafficking constitutes the fourth-largest form of illicit trade flow in the world. Its prevalence is often explained in economic terms: it is a “low-risk, high-profit” trade. Global efforts are therefore directed at increasing the “costs” of wildlife trafficking and reducing the rewards. However, rational cost-benefit calculations by individuals seeking personal economic gain do not fully explain why wildlife trafficking is so prevalent. Nor, therefore, will it be solved by passing new laws and strengthening law enforcement alone. Scholars as well as development and law enforcement practitioners increasingly recognise the importance of considering the way in which the local context and socio-cultural structures (so-called behavioural drivers) influence the behaviours of individuals and their propensity to engage in wildlife trafficking. This social context is not only an anchor for decision-making but also influences the strategies through which wildlife trafficking is organised. Individuals are part of informal networks. Social connections in and between the networks facilitate the transportation of wildlife products from poachers to buyers across vast geographical spaces. Public officials can be part of such networks too. In such cases those individuals, rather than enforcing the law, use their position to cover up the trafficking of wildlife products out of parks, cities and ports in East Africa. This approach of emphasising context-sensitive behavioural drivers anchors the research activities that the Public Governance division is leading in Uganda as part of the wider programme of work of the Institute. Uganda is a hub for wildlife trafficking in East Africa. High volumes of wild animal products are transported into, through and out of Uganda using various methods and strategies. Taking a worm’s-eye perspective, the research aims to provide further understanding on: Why wildlife trafficking happens, by focusing on the economic and behavioural drivers of wildlife trafficking and the role of the broader governance environment in generating increased corruption risks in public offices mandated to prevent and combat wildlife trafficking. How wildlife trafficking happens, by focusing on the role and strategies employed by informal networks of poachers, middlemen and buyers to transport high volumes of wildlife products into, through and out of Uganda. The findings are based on 47 interviews with Ugandan-based and international anti-IWT experts (IGOs, NGOs, academics and public officials) and 8 focus group discussions with wildlife conservation and anti-corruption experts in Kampala, members of reformed poachers’ networks in Western Uganda, and individuals living around a wildlife habitat in Northern Uganda. Together, these provide context-specific insights on the drivers and facilitators of wildlife trafficking in Uganda. The present report synthesises their observations and aims to contribute to the development of evidence-informed approaches to curbing the trade.

This article presents comparative evidence about the relevance of behavioural drivers in relation to petty corruption in three East African countries. It discusses the potential to incorporate beha...

As part of a multi-disciplinary programme of work focused on intelligence-led action against financial crime in illegal wildlife trade (IWT), the Public Governance division of the Basel Institute on Governance is leading research and community engagement activities in East Africa. The objective is to contribute towards the prevention and combating of IWT by developing a better understanding of the context-specific drivers of trafficking and the role of informal social networks and their associated corrupt practices in facilitating such illicit behaviours. This Working Paper presents a broad overview of relevant literature on wildlife trafficking, focused on two main questions: Why does wildlife trafficking happen? How does wildlife trafficking happen? It reflects on important themes and dynamics in regard to the wildlife trade in Africa; the drivers and facilitators of wildlife trafficking; the characteristics, functions and operations of trafficking networks; corruption as a cross-cutting theme; and the important role of Uganda as a transit country for the trafficking of wildlife. The literature review provides the conceptual anchor for social network analysis and field research in East Africa, in particular Uganda. The insights gained are important stepping stones to address the third main question of the wider research project: What can be done to curb wildlife trafficking? Developing a better understanding of the root causes of IWT, along with the application of social network analysis to support the investigation of related crimes, provides a novel and complementary approach towards the prevention and effective combating of IWT in East Africa.

Illegal wildlife trade (IWT) poses a threat to many countries in Africa, Asia, South and Central America. While the role of informal networks in sustaining wildlife trafficking is ever more on the radar of scholars and practitioners, their modus operandi remains largely understudied. The literature tells us that these informal networks play a role in sustaining this illicit cross-border trade. This paper deep-dives into this and the roles and strategies used by informal networks of poachers, intermediaries, traffickers, and buyers to transport high volumes of wildlife products into, through and out of Uganda. This East African country is an essential entrepot for wildlife trafficking in East Africa. The analysis is informed by qualitative fieldwork conducted in Uganda between 2019 and 2020. It comprises 47 interviews with Ugandan-based and international anti-IWT experts and 8 focus group discussions (FGDs) with wildlife conservation and anti-corruption experts in Kampala, and members of reformed poachers’ networks in Western Uganda and individuals living around a wildlife habitat in Northern Uganda. This research focuses on the types of actors, functions, and strategies significant for facilitating IWT in the country. The empirical findings confirm the role of informal networks in promoting the illegal wildlife trade in Uganda. First, this paper differentiates between categories of actors depending on their key role in managing illegal wildlife trade in Uganda. Second, it explores the mechanisms of coordination that these actors use to govern network relations for achieving various illicit goals. Third, it analyses the type of informal governance system that enables such mechanisms of network coordination, as based on a mix of centralisation and decentralisation, and organized and opportunistic strategies. Lastly, the empirical findings highlight these informal cross-border networks for being flexible structures that adapt to so-called patterns of ‘least resistance’.

This Working Paper provides guidance on developing anti-corruption interventions based on a Social Norms and Behaviour Change (SNBC) approach. Still a relatively nascent field, SNBC interventions typically address social norms that make corruption acceptable or expected, and attempt to influence behaviours away from corrupt practices. The guidance is based on lessons learned from a largely successful pilot project in Tanzania that targeted social norms fuelling bribery ("gift giving") in health facilities and attempted to change the behaviours of both health care providers and users away from exchanging gifts. Survey results showed a 14–44% decrease in gift-giving intentions, attitudes and positive beliefs among hospital users following the pilot intervention. The guidance covers: How to identify when a SNBC approach is suitable Essential background research needed to design anti-corruption SNBC interventions Frameworks to formulate theories of change Specific elements to build into SNBC interventions What practitioners should expect when embarking on an SNBC intervention Ways they can help build evidence and understanding of SNBC approaches in the anti-corruption field. About and acknowledgements This publication was supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The contents of this publication do not represent the official position of either BMZ or GIZ. The pilot intervention that serves as the basis for most of the reflections included in this document was funded by the Global Integrity Anti-Corruption Evidence Programme (GI-ACE), funded with UK aid from the UK government.

Cet article propose un nouveau cadre conceptuel pour qualifier et evaluer le repertoire des pratiques utilisees par les reseaux informels dans le but de redistribuer le pouvoir et l’acces aux ressources. Ces normes et pratiques distinctes font l’objet d’une typologie comprenant la cooptation, le controle et la dissimulation. La cooptation implique le recrutement dans le reseau par le biais d’echanges reciproques de faveurs. Le controle est destine a garantir la discipline parmi les membres du reseau au moyen de l’humiliation et de l’isolement social. La dissimulation fait reference aux apparences formelles derriere lesquelles se cache l’informalite et a pour objet la protection et la legitimation du reseau. Ces trois modalites sont pertinentes pour parvenir a une conception plus detaillee de la corruption et de ses fondements. Les resultats de notre recherche comparative dans trois pays d’Afrique de l’Est (le Rwanda, la Tanzanie et l’Ouganda) laissent a penser que ces pratiques informelles sont pertinentes pour comprendre les choix et les attitudes des fournisseurs et usagers des services publics a l’echelle locale. L’adoption de ce prisme d’analyse permet d'expliquer l’impact limite des recommandations conventionnelles de lutte contre la corruption et fournit une base au developpement de strategies alternatives qui exploitent le potentiel des dynamiques des reseaux sociaux pour favoriser des resultats positifs contre la corruption.

This policy brief summarises the main findings and lessons learned from research on corruption, social norms and behaviours in Tanzania. While the findings show that petty corruption is prevalent and results in inequitable public service delivery, they also inform that citizen and public officials’ attitudes and behaviours towards corruption are shifting as a result of changes in the political environment. The evidence furthermore suggests that the effectiveness of conventional anti-corruption approaches may be enhanced by incorporating behavioural insights about entrenched social norms and collective understandings that are associated with practices of bribery and favouritism.

This policy brief summarises the main findings and lessons learned from research on corruption, social norms and behaviours in Uganda. The empirical evidence indicates that behavioural factors associated to social practices and collective understandings play a role in shaping Ugandan citizens’ attitudes towards petty corruption and in fuelling practices such as bribery and favouritism. On the basis of the research findings, policy recommendations are put forward aiming to contribute to the development of anti-corruption interventions that incorporate behavioural insights in their design and implementation.

This Policy Brief summarises the main findings and lessons learned from a research on corruption, social norms and behaviours in Rwanda. The findings show that, although Rwanda has successfully curbed corruption, favouritism continues to be used to secure preferential access to public health services. While the Rwandan experience illustrates how behavioural insights can effectively complement conventional anti-corruption approaches, further entry areas for deepening behavioural anti-corruption interventions are also identified.

This Working Paper presents findings from a research project that sought to better understand decision-making processes on the return of illegally obtained assets using the examples of past cases of returning assets that had been stolen from Kazakhstan, Peru and the Philippines. While previous papers on the subject of returning stolen assets and end-use of returned assets were based on third-party and desk research, the research feeding into this working paper is based on first-hand accounts collected through semi-structured interviews with key decision makers involved in these cases in the concerned states. The key objective of the research was to better understand the motivations, considerations and processes that led to the decisions on how and for what purpose to use returned assets. In this context, the report in particular looks at a question often debated in asset recovery circles, namely whether there may be a power imbalance between requesting and requested states in these processes despite the fact that requesting states are legally empowered through the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). The potential existence of such a power imbalance has in the past often given rise to concern, as it is perceived to potentially compromise the fundamental principles of asset return of UNCAC and the sovereignty of the concerned states.

In many countries high levels of corruption persist in spite of the adoption of so-called anti-corruption “best practices”. In this paper we make a call to pursue a context-sensitive inquiry into the drivers of corruption in order to substantially improve the practices and effects of anti-corruption. We discuss evidence from case studies in Africa, Central Asia and the Caucasus suggesting that high levels of corruption are associated to a significant discrepancy between formal rules and informal practices. Informal practices of co-optation, control and camouflage are used by political and business elites to safeguard regime survival via a de facto re-distribution of public resources in favour of informal networks of “insiders”. From the perspective of citizens, corrupt acts such as bribing enjoy social acceptability especially when they are effective in solving practical problems and protecting livelihoods. The functional relevance of informal practices clarifies the factors behind the limited effectiveness of anti-corruption law-driven reforms, short-term action plans, and technical measures that focus on particular processes, procedures and institutions. We argue for the need to ponder informality and consider how it may help us develop better anti-corruption strategies. The prevalence and entrenched nature of informal practices indicate their heuristic potential: they can tell us what we are missing in official policies, inform about resistances and can help uncover pathways to strategic, sustainable reforms. This paper has been presented at the OECD Global Anti-Corruption & Integrity Forum 2017 in a form of a poster presentation.

This article applies a novel conceptual framework to characterise and assess the repertoire of practices used by informal networks to redistribute power and access to resources. These distinct norms and practices are typologised as co-optation, control, and camouflage. Co-optation involves recruitment into the network by means of the reciprocal exchange of favours. Control is about ensuring discipline amongst network members by means of shaming and social isolation. Camouflage refers to the formal facades behind which informality hides and is about protecting and legitimising the network. All three are relevant to a more fine-grained understanding of corruption and its underpinnings. Findings from our comparative research in three East African countries (Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda) suggest that these informal practices are relevant to an understanding of the choices and attitudes of providers and users of public services at the local level. Adopting this analytical lens helps to explain the limited impact of conventional anti-corruption prescriptions and provides a basis to develop alternative strategies that harness the potential of social network dynamics to promote positive anti-corruption outcomes.

The problem of corruption, however described, dates back thousands of years. Professionals working in areas such as development studies, economics and political studies, were the first to most actively analyse and publish on the topic of corruption and its negative impacts on economies, societies and politics. There was, at that time, minimal literature available on corruption and the law. The literature and discussion on bribery and corruption, as well as on the negative impact of each and what is required to address them, particularly in the legal context, are now considerable. Corruption and anti-corruption are multifaceted and multi-disciplinary. The focus now on the law and compliance, and perhaps commercial incentives, is relatively easy. However, corruption, anti-corruption and the motivations for them are complex. If we continue to discuss, debate, engage, address corruption and anti-corruption in our own disciplinary silos, we are unlikely to significantly progress the fight against corruption. What do terms such as 'culture of integrity', 'demand accountability', 'transparency and accountability' and 'ethical corporate culture' dominating the anti-corruption discourse mean, if anything, in other disciplines? If they are meaningless, what approach would practitioners in those other disciplines suggest be adopted to address corruption. What has their experience been in the field? How can the work of each discipline contribute to the work of whole and, as such, improve our work in and understanding of anti-corruption? This book seeks to answer these questions and to understand the phenomenon more comprehensively. It will be of value to researchers, academics, lawyers, legislators and students in the fields of law, anthropology, sociology, international affairs, and business.

This Policy Brief summarises the lessons learned from a systematic literature review that explored the feasibility of adopting a behavioural approach to address petty corruption. The findings point to the importance of developing messages that challenge conventional wisdom about the inevitability of corruption, emphasising the costs of corruption to the welfare of individuals as well as showcasing examples of successful detection and punishment of crimes of corruption. Accounting for prevailing social norms and beliefs is also key because otherwise anti-corruption interventions may disseminate concepts and promote actions that fail to deliver the desired messages to their intended beneficiaries.

This practitioners’ handbook provides the required tools for contextualising social accountability initiatives aimed at empowering citizens to engage in anti-corruption actions. The material herein contained has been developed through a collaborative effort with UNDP and reflects the findings from academic research conducted in the scope of the ANTICORRP research consortium (anticorrp.eu). The handbook presents an analytical framework through which the critical dimensions involved in developing successful anti-corruption social accountability initiatives are identified. It also includes concrete research tools that may be applied in order to obtain key information about the communities intended to engage in anti-corruption actions and guidelines to aid implementers in designing participatory schemes that best meet the characteristics of the local context.

Social accountability has become a favoured approach among most major multilateral and bilateral donors to develop grass roots mechanisms for democratic governance. In a successful scenario, citizen participation can promote more responsive governments and better provision of basic services by linking users’ feedback to the policy design, implementation and monitoring activities typically undertaken by the state. However, there is a lack of agreement about which specific types of social accountability interventions yield the best results and what are the causal pathways that are critical to generate positive changes. This paper presents an analytical framework that identifies the key components that are required to exercise effective direct accountability and provides a blueprint to assess social accountability initiatives. This paper appeared in eucrim, the European Criminal Law Associations’ Forum, 2013/2, published by Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science, c/o Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal Law, Freiburg i. B., Germany.

As awareness of the role governance in the performance of health systems has increased, so has the need to come up with systematic means to evaluate governance shortcomings to develop adequate interventions. This working paper describes a framework to assess governance in the health systems of low-income countries that is intended to have empirical applicability with a problem-driven approach. The analysis is grounded on a re-categorization of governance dimensions for greater heuristic power, with an emphasis made on the importance of strategic systems design and accountability. The proposed methodology includes mapping of both formal and informal institutions, actors and networks. This underscores the idea that in order to properly address governance weaknesses it is of utmost importance to have an insight into whether the interplay of formal and informal norms facilitates or undermines system performance.

Introduction: Post myocardial infarction (MI) patients are at risk of scar related ventricular tachycardia (VT). Hypothesis: Stem cell therapy reduces post-MI scar size, potentially leading to a reduction in the risk of ventricular arrhythmias (VA). Methods: A post-MI scar model of VT was created by transient occlusion of the mid left anterior descending artery in 56 swine. Five weeks after infarct creation 29 subjects were treated with allogeneic cardiac stem cells (CSC): 10 underwent transcoronary delivery of CSC, 9 direct transepicardial delivery (via a minithoracotomy) and 10 underwent a combined transcoronary and VT substrate guided (late potentials) direct transendocardial CSC delivery procedure using an electroanatomic mapping system. Of the remainder, 8 subjects underwent a “sham” transepicardial procedure and 19 served as controls. Seventeen weeks after infarct creation an electrophysiological study was performed in each subject to assess for ventricular arrhythmia inducibility. VA inducibility was compared in each group vs. the control group. Results: Of the 19 control subjects, 17 were inducible (89,5 %). As presented in the figure, CSC delivery with a combined transcoronary/transendocardial approach was associated with a significant reduction in VT inducibility rates compared to controls (20 % vs. 89,5 %; p value 0,001). Subjects treated with transcoronary CSC also experienced significantly lower VA inducibility rates (40 % vs. 89,5 %; p value 0,009). There were no differences in VA inducibility compared with controls in patients in the “sham” (62,5 % vs 89,5 %; p value 0,136) or the transepicardial group (66,7 % vs 89,5 %; p value 0,290). Conclusions: Combined transcoronary and VT substrate-guided transendocardial CSC delivery is associated with a significant reduction in VA inducibility in a post-MI swine model. Future human studies should evaluate the effects of allogeneic CSC therapy on ventricular arrhythmia burden in post-MI patients.

Despite significant investment and anti-corruption capacity building in the past decades, 'most systematically corrupt countries are considered to be just as corrupt now as they were before the anti-corruption interventions'. Statements like this are indicative of the frustration shared by practitioners and scholars alike at the apparent lack of success in controlling corruption worldwide and point to the need to rethink our understanding of the factors that fuel corruption and make it so hard to abate. In this article we propose a novel analytical lens through which to understand the root causes of corruption. Our arguments emerge out of the study of commonplace practices shaping political, economic and social outcomes in Mexico, Russia and Tanzania. The comparative analysis of these three seemingly dissimilar cases revealed striking similarities in rudimentary patterns of informal governance, which in turn can be linked to specific incentives to engage in corrupt behaviours.

Power and influence analysis can be used to assess corruption vulnerabilities in the public sector. This approach helps identify powerful stakeholders that should be engaged to achieve maximum impact for anti-corruption strategies. It also helps reveal informal political networks and relationships that can hamper anti-corruption efforts. Power and influence analysis was applied to the Ugandan public sector drug supply chain and suggested that interventions aimed at reducing corruption risks would need to take into account the influence of informal political power in addition to the formal institutional mandates, and the prevalence of a vast network of patronage networks across the country.