Angola: Launch of a New Program to Combat Corruption
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FSVC is pleased to announce the launch of a new program in Angola funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL). This program will support Angola’s growing civil society and independent media in increasing public awareness in efforts to combat corruption and promote transparency.
Over the past two years, the Government of Angola (GRA) has made noteworthy progress in pursuing an anti-corruption agenda. The GRA has prioritized combatting state capture, which has included fighting the power of elites appropriating public resources for private benefit. However, Angola still suffers from endemic corruption, which poses high risks to its reform trajectory over the upcoming years.
In this context, FSVC will build the capacities of local media to investigate and report corruption stories, and of civil society organizations (CSOs) to monitor corruption and advocate for reforms. FSVC will also facilitate public-private dialogue and collaboration on anti-corruption initiatives. This program will help increase Angolan citizens’ understanding of ongoing anti-corruption reforms and how they can advocate for more government action.
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Help support FSVC’s critical work to improve lives in developing and emerging market countries. Make a tax-deductible donation to FSVC today!
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Tunisia: Creating Business Opportunities for Small Enterprises
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FSVC Matchmaking Session
Sousse, Tunisia, September 2021
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With more than 80,000 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) employing over half of the population, Tunisia’s economic growth depends heavily on the health of its SME sector. The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted the Tunisian economy, with SMEs at the front line.
To help the Tunisian economy recover from the economic shock, FSVC is building the capacity of regional Business Centers to provide new and innovative services to SMEs. As part of this work, FSVC helped Business Centers organize “matchmaking” sessions to help SMEs obtain business opportunities with larger companies looking to outsource non-core activities. In September, FSVC’s matchmaking session brought together 32 SMEs and eight large enterprises from various parts of Tunisia. As a result of this project, seven business deals were made, and 22 SMEs received a follow-up meeting request from a large enterprise.
This project was implemented with funding from the U.S. Department of State.
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Niger: Launching an E-Platform to Submit Requests
to the Ombudsman
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Official Launch of the e-Platform
Niamey, Niger, September 2021
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Niger is a vast country, more than 80 percent covered by the Sahara desert, and the capital city of Niamey is located in the Southwest of the country, making it difficult to reach citizens throughout the territory. To increase engagement between government institutions and citizens, FSVC has been providing technical assistance to the Ombudsman of Niger over the past two years.
FSVC has helped the Ombudsman open regional offices in the cities of Maradi and Zinder. FSVC has also organized open sessions in the regional offices for local citizens to easily submit their requests in-person. In addition, FSVC has worked with the Ombudsman to develop a simple e-platform for citizens to submit their requests online. The platform is user-friendly and enables citizens throughout the country to submit a request to the Ombudsman. The platform was officially launched on September 16.
Participants included Nigerien government institutions representatives, civil society members and journalists. Ombudsmen from other West African countries attended the event virtually and reported that the platform was an innovative solution that they would like to explore as well.
This project, one of 15 that FSVC completed in Niger during the third quarter of 2021, was organized with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
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Interview of FSVC President & CEO Andrew Spindler at
Sibos Conference
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On October 12, FSVC President & CEO Andrew Spindler participated in the 2021 Sibos conference as a guest speaker. Organized by SWIFT, the annual conference connects thousands of executives, decision makers and thought leaders from across the global financial services industry.
During his interview, Andy presented FSVC’s work and mission, and discussed the importance of strengthening financial institutions across the emerging market world. He then highlighted FSVC’s role in a number of financial areas, ranging from increasing access to finance for SMEs, to helping emerging market countries identify and adopt new financial technologies, and more. A link is included here to the interview.
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About Us
The Financial Services Volunteer Corps (FSVC) is a not-for-profit organization that helps strengthen financial sectors in developing and emerging market countries. It does so with the ultimate aim of promoting job creation, economic growth and a better quality of life. FSVC structures practical, results-oriented technical assistance and training missions staffed by senior financial sector professionals who serve as unpaid volunteer experts. Over the past 31 years, more than 10,000 volunteer experts from the international financial, legal and regulatory communities have taken part in 3,200 missions, impacting millions of people in 65 countries.
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