The blog will feature opinions, analytical materials, and discussion notes by SOC ACE researchers from different countries. Its purpose is to support discussion of practical approaches to countering organised crime, illicit financial flows, and corruption.

In the first post opening the blog, SOC ACE Director Heather Marquette notes that the programme’s research focuses on developing politically feasible approaches to addressing these transnational threats. At the same time, the authors suggest starting not from preconceived ideas about the “right” solutions, but from an analysis of the specific problem and the context in which it arises. This approach involves examining the social, structural, economic, and political factors that allow organised crime and corruption to perform certain functions in people’s everyday lives.

SOC ACE pays particular attention to the political feasibility of anti-corruption measures. According to the authors, the absence of political will should not be treated solely as an insurmountable obstacle to effective reforms. Instead, they suggest taking into account the context, possible trade-offs, the risks of unintended negative consequences, and the need for a politically sensitive approach to designing and implementing measures to counter corruption and organised crime.

*The research programme Serious Organised Crime & Anti-Corruption Evidence (SOC ACE) is dedicated to identifying politically feasible approaches to countering organised crime, illicit financial flows, and corruption. The programme is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and partly by UK Aid from the UK government. SOC ACE’s research is based on a problem-driven approach and takes into account the political, social, and economic context in which anti-corruption measures are implemented.