Longman in Ozy: Rwanda’s Anticorruption Efforts
Timothy Longman, Associate Professor of International Relations and Political Science and Director of the African Studies Center at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, was recently interviewed on the effectiveness of Rwanda’s anti-corruption efforts.
Longman was quoted in a June 2, 2016 article on Ozy entitled “Can This African Government Teach Congress a Lesson?”
From the text of the article:
Rwanda’s East African neighbors don’t look good in comparison either. Corruption-ridden Kenya stands at 51st, while politically volatile Burundi ranks 121st. Rwanda’s not-so-secret weapon? Ruthless anticorruption efforts with zero-tolerance policies and long prison sentences. “Rwanda has proven that it is possible to tackle corruption if you make a serious effort and show no tolerance,” says Timothy Longman, director of the African Studies Center at Boston University.
Still, totalitarian tendencies aside, in just over two decades the Rwandan government has managed to build strong institutions, curb corruption and do away with most red tape. And as Longman points out: “You don’t need to be an autocratic regime to do all of this.”
Longman’s current research focuses on state -society relations in Africa, looking particularly at human rights, transitional justice, democratization, civil society, the politics of race and ethnicity, religion and politics, and women and politics. You can read more about him here.