The Department for International Development (DFID) is currently committed to spending £135 million on security and access to justice programmes in 13 countries around the world. These programmes seek to improve the quality of security and justice service delivery to the populations of developing countries. Our programmes build both effectiveness and accountability by strengthening the capacity of civilian institutions to provide effective management and oversight. For example, in Sierra Leone, DFID has supported the creation of the Office of National Security, a civilian-led organisation that co-ordinated the security sector’s role in Sierra Leone’s free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections held last year.
Reducing corruption and improving governance and accountability for budgets in security forces forms an important part of the Department for International Development’s (DFID) work to improve security and access to justice for the poor. DFID is currently committed to spending £135 million on security and justice programmes in 13 countries. Many of these programmes aim to strengthen overall management of security institutions, which helps drive out corruption. Some also include a specific component aimed directly at reducing corruption. For example, DFID is currently working with Ugandan officials to improve procurement systems and thereby reduce the potential for corruption in the defence ministry.
DFID also funds the non-governmental organisation Transparency International (UK), which works to reduce corruption by increasing openness and oversight of defence and security equipment procurement in developing countries around the world.