Blockchain can have multiple applications in the social economy, but must not create a new "digital economy elite"

Staff

Originally associated with cryptocurrencies, blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) are in fact very versatile and can be usefully applied to the social economy. However, it is important to regulate them properly and gear them to benefits for all, allowing everyone to participate, says the EESC in a report tabled at its July plenary

Money from the ECB invested into gambling, oil and weapons

Marco Dotti

Everybody talks about it. But what is Quantitative Easing? And where does the money go? Corporate Europe Observatory has made a list of the beneficiaries of the European Central Bank’s corporate bond purchasing scheme. The results are disturbing, unless you think that oil, fancy cars, motorways, champagne, and gambling are a good place to put public money...

Italian NGOs under attack, unfortunately not an isolated case

Staff

Italian NGOs have come under attack on efforts to save migrants’ lives in the Mediterranean. The Italian case is unfortunately not isolated, and we witness worrying cases across Europe.

Corruption: here is the global picture

Staff

Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index 2016 analyses the levels of corruption country by country, portraying a concerning global picture where no country is immune to closed-doors deals and conflict of interest

Transparency missing under the EU Christmas tree

Staff

Publicly accessible registers are on course to become a global transparency standard – the EU should get on board rather than get left behind.

Transparency, silver bullet for a more just society

Eloise Todd

As more than 70 governments, together with the private sector and civil society, are meeting in Paris for the Open Government Partnership Summit to promote transparency, citizen participation and democratic innovation, let's make sure the topic is on the table for elections across Europe.

NGOs urge the EU to agree an action plan that respects their promises on development and aid effectiveness

Staff

Today, as the EU adopted its Common Position for the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation High Level Meeting taking place in Nairobi on 30 November - 1 December, Europe’s development NGOs urged EU leaders to set themselves a clear timeline to achieve their commitments, crucial to delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

A pivotal moment for the Central African Republic

Friederike Röder

Leaders in Brussels must provide CAR with the support it needs to not only address immediate humanitarian concerns, but also to break the decades-long cycle of conflict with locally owned capacity, writes Friederike Röder.

A third of Eu citizens believes government officials and lawmakers are highly corrupt

Staff

Governments are doing a poor job at fighting corruption across Europe and Central Asia. New Transparency International report shows people fear speaking out against corruption

EU aid gap puts sustainable development at risk

Staff

The new aid target the EU set itself to reach the 0.7% target by 2030 is too long and too uncertain to deliver the financing needed to end global poverty by 2030, CONCORD Aidwatch report says