Daily writing prompt

If you won two free plane tickets, where would you go?

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If I won two free plane tickets, I would sponsor two young people, of the Gen-Z generation, one male and one female from our area of operation, greater northern Uganda, to travel to the least corrupt country in Africa, the Seychelles.

This is so that our disillusioned young people may be able to learn and appreciate how a country with a high Corruption Perception Index (CPI) score looks like and how it attained such a score.

The CPI score of Seychelles is 71 out of 100. The scale for CPI scoring is such that 0 is the lowest score, “signifying a high level of corruption” and 100 is the highest score “denoting little to no corruption.”

Whereas, it is important to note that CPI measures “perceived levels of public sector corruption,” and not actual proven corruption, perception of corruption is likely a good indicator of prevalence of it.

I would love for our young people to travel to and within the Seychelles so the may be able to draw comparisons that will enable them to answer the question:

How come our own Country, Uganda, with a National Anti-Corruption Strategy in place, is not achieving its intention of “delivering the zero tolerance to corruption policy” and therefore attaining a high CPI score?

“Corruption in Uganda is deep-rooted, occurring in all sectors – public and private, and in a number of forms. It has continued unabeted, despite the numerous anti-corruption efforts and commitments the State and non-state actors have undertaken. There are still high incidences of corruption, adversely affecting service delivery, and ultimately impeding national development and increasing public mistrust.” Mr. Alex B. Okello, Permanent Secretary, Directorate of Ethics and Integrity, Office of the President of Uganda. Mr. Okello is also among the Founder Members and the Finance Committee Chair of CPAR Uganda.

For 2023, Uganda’s CPI score was only 26 and Uganda was in position 141 out of the 180 countries ranked by Transparency International. Sadly, Uganda’s score declined from 29 in 2012; rose up a little in 2019 and has continued on a downward trend since 2020.

So, yes, I would sponsor younger Ugandans to travel to Seychelles so that they may experience a Country in which the Government is “unwavering in its commitment to promote transparency and combat corruption through the implementation of a robust anti-corruption framework.”

And to experience how such unwavering commitment has ensured and assured functional public institutions that deliver services to the people; and how citizens are thriving enjoying their rights.

While taking in the the beautiful sights and sounds of Seychelles and enjoying the people; appreciate how state and citizen can work in tandem for a corrupt free country.

Profiled photo @ Fishermans Cove Resort, “People of the Seychelles: A rich tapestry of cultures.”