12 Feb 2025
Diana Chigas's recent visit to Nigeria focused on exploring the practical implications of CJL and PIC's research on the intersection of gender, faith, and social norms in driving corruption.
Diana Chigas, Co-Director of the Corruption, Justice and Legitimacy (CJL) Program, and Dr. Paul Bukuluki of Makerere University recently traveled to Nigeria to continue a pilot research project with the Policy Innovation Centre (PIC) on how to diagnose and address social norms, gender norms and faith norms that combine to drive corrupt practices in the health sector. This joint initiative explores how social norms interact with gender norms, faith norms, and other societal influences to drive unauthorized informal charges in primary health facilities in Nigeria. While the interactions between norms of multiple groups people belong to are acknowledged to influence people’s behavior, the interactions remain under-researched. CJL and PIC aim to bridge this gap and develop solutions to address these underlying drivers of corruption.
Building on the foundation laid during her previous visit last year, this trip focused on finalizing the conclusions and exploring strategies for addressing them. The team convened a workshop with practitioners from government and civil society working on health and on anti-corruption to discuss how to translate the findings into practical strategies and programs to reduce informal payments in the health sector.
A key focus of this project is integrating social norms change methodologies into anti-corruption programming . Research shows societal expectations and power dynamics often sustain corrupt behaviors. Understanding what these norms are, and how they are different depending on people’s different identities, can help craft effective interventions that foster lasting behavior change.
CJL and PIC will soon begin sharing the findings of this project. To receive updates, subscribe to our blog and Brightspots newsletter!