Giving Compass' Take:

• At the World Economic Forum, Tim Hanstad calls for greater accountability within governments and businesses to curb outstanding corruption in healthcare spending during the pandemic.

• With so many entities frantically spending on coronavirus prevention efforts, how can we monitor corruption in healthcare spending? What can you do as a funder to direct your funding through reliable means to communities in need?

• Locate a list of vetted funds that will responsibly handle your coronavirus response efforts.

The global pandemic has public health experts and medical providers around the world working overtime. And so, it seems, are profiteers.

Even before the pandemic, an estimated $455 billion of the $7.35 trillion spent annually on healthcare worldwide was lost to fraud and corruption. Today, as governments are ramping up pandemic response spending to unprecedented levels and shovelling it out of the door with understandable urgency and desperation, the risk of corruption and misappropriation has increased exponentially.  A recent survey by a German anti-fraud consulting company found that a majority of the 58 countries surveyed experienced corruption related to purchasing and/or access to personal protective equipment.

Even in the best of times, government corruption and mismanagement are harmful – they can cost lives and financial resources. In today’s pandemic they fuel a spiraling tragedy. Together, they will prolong the crisis by undermining government efficiency, significantly increasing the loss of life, wasting untold resources, and reducing society’s already fragile trust in government – each of which has significant long-term consequences that will linger far longer than the virus itself.

As this pandemic – perhaps the greatest challenge to governments in our lifetime – mounts, we must build a coalition of civil society, business leaders, dedicated government officials and funders to strengthen government accountability and effectiveness and change the trajectory of this pandemic and our futures.

Funders must recognize this as a moment to pivot from retail philanthropy towards catalytic philanthropy. To maximize impact, a good portion of philanthropy’s billions should be directed at ensuring the much larger government response is effective and that government systems are strengthened for the long term.

Read the full article about corruption in healthcare spending by Tim Hanstad at World Economic Forum.