ALAC
Transparency Ethiopia (TE) has established its Advocacy and Legal Aid Center (ALAC) in the year 2016. TE believes that corruption can be fought and its effect be minimized when citizens are aware, involved and consulted on every possible way of eradicating the problem.
Involvement of people in the fight against corruption could be assisted through advising victims of corruption in various ways. ALAC which is being practiced by most chapters of Transparency International (the coalition against corruption which Transparency Ethiopia is a chapter) has become the best tool to engage citizens against corruption.
ALAC was first started in 2003 by three National Chapters of Transparency International – Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Romania. Currently more than 61 Transparency International (TI) chapters have launched and are strongly implementing ALAC and it has enabled them to work with citizen and government against corruption.
ALAC is commissioned to provide legal advice and assistance to victims and witnesses of corruption. It aims at providing citizens a forum to report corruption, seek solutions and get legal and administrative advices. This center assists citizens to know and defend their rights and enhance the available tools and mechanisms that will be used against the risks of corruption at all levels.
ALAC has two main stream interdependent components, these are:
- free legal aid to victims and witnesses of corruption,
- advocacy to bring social and institutional reform for combating corruption.
The center aims at empowering citizens to bring corruption related complaints and demand solutions as well as lobby for changes. Thus, boosting citizens participation through empowering would be the primary goal of the center.
Furthermore, the establishment of ALAC will provide citizens a forum through which they can solve problems they faced in relation with corruption and mal practice and assist the government in the effort to create transparent and accountable civil service.
ALAC has started with the following specific objectives:
- Empower citizens to make and pursue corruption related complaints,
- Strengthen the fight against corruption by securing the active participation of the society,
- Raise the awareness of the society about the evils of corruption and the mechanisms of fighting it,
- Analyze and provide recommendations of corruption prone work procedures and corrupt behaviors of officials; pinpoint laws and procedures giving room to corruption
- Bring systematic improvements (legal, administrative and institutional) to the corruption prone systems institutions
- Keep an up to date record of corruption related complaints of citizens.
ALAC is working in four regional cities (Adama, Hawassa, Mekele and Bahir Dar) in Ethiopia in addition to Addis Ababa. The center has entertained more than 100 cases so far.
For any inquire or further explanation call us with the following phone numbers:
Addis Ababa: +251 967 00 17 04
Adama: +251 966 48 98 38
Hawassa: +251 966 4898 39
Bahir Dar: +251 966 4898 40
Mekele: +251 966 4898 41
