When ASJ (formerly known as AJS) started working to make Honduras a more just society, we quickly realized that fighting corruption was essential to protecting the poor and vulnerable. Inefficiency and intentional misuse of public resources robbed education, health, and legal services from those who depended on them the most. We knew that an improved Security Sector would create a police force equipped to guard citizen safety and reduce violence, and working with the Education and Health Sectors would improve Hondurans’ access to quality education and hospitals. Still, for many, corruption seemed unshakeable.

However, our work with government institutions has shown us that transforming systems is not as far-off of an idea as it seems. ASJ has always sought to promote improvement in institutions, but this work became even stronger in 2014 when ASJ signed a “Transparency Agreement” with Transparency International and the Honduran government. This agreement allowed us to perform a systematic review of Honduras’ most important institutions to help make these institutions more effective.

How do we evaluate state institutions? First, we complete a thorough evaluation of each institution in areas such as their productivity, transparency, human resources, inclusion of vulnerable groups, citizen treatment, and use of statistics. By reviewing their procedures and practices, we are able to see the strengths and weaknesses of each institution and give them a performance score. We make this information available to the public, and then we offer concrete recommendations and technical assistance to implement those changes. 

At first, Honduran institutions scored an average of 33%, revealing the ways in which many of these institutions were failing to serve the Honduran population. But after five years of ASJ evaluations, the average score has improved by 30%! While there is still much work to be done, this improvement gives us hope it is possible to reform state institutions, which ultimately, positively impacts Hondurans’ lives.

As one public official from the Property Institute said, “In the long-term, these exercises of accountability and social auditing generate social impact that citizens can feel,…protect the population’s property, and give [citizens] legal security.” For example, ASJ’s work in this important institution helped save over 400 families in one community from unjust eviction.

Change in state institutions is creating real impact for Honduras, and the improvements we’ve already seen remind us that transforming systems is possible.