Category: Data Journalism

Crime, corruption, tax evasion: $991B illicit capital flows in 2012

mcmangahas Leave a comment

By Global Financial Integrity

A RECORD US$991.2 billion in illicit capital flowed out of developing and emerging economies in 2012, facilitated by crime, corruption, and tax evasion, according to the latest study released Tuesday by Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a Washington DC-based research and advisory organization. The study is the first GFI analysis to include estimates of illicit financial flows for 2012.

The report, GFI’s 2014 annual global update on illicit financial flows, pegs cumulative illicit outflows from developing economies at US$6.6 trillion between 2003 and 2012, the latest year for which data are available.

Titled “Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2003-2012,” the report finds that illicit outflows are growing at an inflation-adjusted 9.4 percent per year—roughly double global GDP growth over the same period.

The report demonstrates that, “illicit financial flows are the most damaging economic problem plaguing the world’s developing and emerging economies,” said GFI President Raymond Baker, a longtime authority on financial crime.

The PH Story

Every year, no thanks to crime, corruption, tax evasion, and trade misinvoicing, the Philippines loses an average of US$9.35 billion — or about Php415.14 billion — to illicit capital flight.

According to the report, across a nine-year period from 2003 to 2012, these malefactors have cost the Philippines an indicative total of US$93.49 billion, or about PhP4.15 trillion, nearly double the general appropriations act for 2015.

By year, the report recorded illicit capital outflows from the country thus:

* US$8.3 billion in 2003;
* US$9.2 billion in 2004;
* US$13.5 billion in 2005;
* US$10.0 billion in 2006;
* US$7.99 billion in 2007;
* US$6.9 billion in 2008;
* US$8.66 billion in 2009;
* US$8.9 billion in 2010;
* US$11 billion in 2011; and
* US$9.16 billion in 2012

“These outflows—already greater than the combined sum of all FDI (foreign direct investments) and ODA (official development aid) flowing into these countries—are sapping roughly a trillion dollars per year from the world’s poor and middle-income economies,” Baker said.

“Most troubling, however, is the fact that these outflows are growing at an alarming rate of 9.4 percent per year—twice as fast as global GDP,” said Baker. “It is simply impossible to achieve sustainable global development unless world leaders agree to address this issue head-on. That’s why it is essential for the United Nations to include a specific target next year to halve all trade-related illicit flows by 2030 as part of post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda.”

Authored by GFI Chief Economist Dev Kar and GFI Junior Economist Joseph Spanjers, the study reveals that illicit financial flows hit an historic high of US$991.2 billion in 2012, marking a dramatic increase from 2003, when illicit outflows totaled a mere US$297.4 billion.

Over the span of the decade, the report finds that illicit financial flows are growing at an inflation-adjusted average rate of 9.4 percent per year. Still, in many parts of the world, the authors note that illicit flows are growing much faster—particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and in Sub-Saharan Africa, where illicit flows are growing at an average annual inflation-adjusted rate of 24.2 and 13.2 percent, respectively.

Totaling US$6.6 trillion over the entire decade, illicit financial flows averaged a staggering 3.9 percent of the developing world’s GDP.

As a share of its economy, Sub-Saharan Africa suffered the largest illicit financial outflows—averaging 5.5 percent of its GDP—followed by developing Europe (4.4 percent), Asia (3.7 percent), MENA (3.7 percent), and the Western Hemisphere (3.3 percent).

“It’s extremely troubling to note just how fast illicit flows are growing,” stated Dr. Kar, the principal author of the study. “Over the past decade, illicit outflows from developing countries increased by 9.4 percent each year in real terms, significantly outpacing economic growth. Moreover, these outflows are growing fastest in and taking the largest toll—as a share of GDP—on some of the poorest regions of the world. These findings underscore the urgency with which policymakers should address illicit financial flows.”

According to the report, ‘fraudulent misinvoicing of trade transactions was revealed to be the largest component of illicit financial flows from developing countries, accounting for 77.8 percent of all illicit flows—highlighting that any effort to significantly curtail illicit financial flows must address trade misinvoicing.

The US$991.2 billion that flowed illicitly out of developing countries in 2012, the report said, was greater than the combined total of foreign direct investment (FDI) and net official development assistance (ODA), which these economies received that year.

Illicit outflows were roughly 1.3 times the US$789.4 billion in total FDI, and they were 11.1 times the US$89.7 billion in ODA that these economies received in 2012.

“Illicit financial flows have major consequences for developing economies,” explained Spanjers, the report’s co-author. “Emerging and developing countries hemorrhaged a trillion dollars from their economies in 2012 that could have been invested in local businesses, healthcare, education, or infrastructure. This is a trillion dollars that could have contributed to inclusive economic growth, legitimate private-sector job creation, and sound public budgets. Without concrete action addressing illicit outflows, the drain on the developing world is only going to grow larger.”

Country Rankings
The study by Kar and Spanjers tracks the amount of illegal capital flowing out of 151 different developing and emerging countries over the 10-year period from 2003 through 2012, and it ranks the countries by the volume of illicit outflows.

According to the report, the 25 biggest exporters of illicit financial flows over the decade are:

1. China, US$125.24bn average (US$1.25tr cumulative)
2. Russia, US$97.39bn avg. (US$973.86bn cum.)
3. Mexico, US$51.43bn avg. (US$514.26bn cum.)
4. India, US$43.96bn avg. (US$439.59bn cum.)
5. Malaysia, US$39.49bn avg. (US$394.87bn cum.)
6. Saudi Arabia……. US$30.86bn avg. (US$308.62bn cum.)1
7. Brazil, US$21.71bn avg. (US$217.10bn cum.)
8. Indonesia, US$18.78bn avg. (US$187.84bn cum.)
9. Thailand, US$17.17bn avg. (US$171.68bn cum.)
10. Nigeria, US$15.75bn avg. (US$157.46bn cum.)
11. A.E, US$13.53bn avg. (US$135.30bn cum.) 1
12. South Africa, US$12.21bn avg. (US$122.14bn cum.)
13. Iraq, US$11.14bn avg. (US$89.10bn cum.) 2
14. Costa Rica, US$9.40bn avg. (US$94.03bn cum.)
15. Philippines, US$9.35bn avg. (US$93.49bn cum.)
16. Belarus, US$8.45bn avg. (US$84.53bn cum.)
17. Poland, US$5.31bn avg. (US$53.12bn cum.)
18. Panama, US$4.85bn avg. (US$48.48bn cum.)
19. Serbia, US$4.57bn avg. (US$45.66bn cum.)
20. Chile, US$4.56bn avg. (US$45.64bn cum.)
21. Brunei, US$4.30bn avg. (US$34.40bn cum.) 3
22. Syria, US$3.77bn avg. (US$37.68bn cum.)
23. Egypt, US$3.77bn avg. (US$37.68bn cum.)
24. Paraguay, US$3.70bn avg. (US$36.97bn cum.)
25. Venezuela, US$3.68bn avg. (US$36.77bn cum.)

GFI also found that the top exporters of illegal capital in 2012 were:
1. China, US$249.57bn
2. Russia, US$122.86bn
3. India, US$94.76bn
4. Mexico, US$59.66bn
5. Malaysia, US$48.93bn
6. Saudi Arabia, US$46.53bn
7. Thailand, US$35.56bn
8. Brazil, US$33.93bn
9. South Africa, US$29.13bn
10. Costa Rica, US$21.55bn
11. Indonesia, US$20.82bn
12. A.E, US$19.40bn
13. Iraq, US$14.65bn
14. Belarus, US$13.90bn
15. Philippines, US$9.16bn
16. Syria, US$8.64bn
17. Nigeria, US$7.92bn
18. Trinidad & Tobago, US$7.41bn
19. Vietnam, US$6.93bn
20. Lithuania, US$6.45bn
21. Libya, US$5.40bn
22. Panama, US$5.34bn
23. Aruba, US$5.29bn
24. Egypt, US$5.09bn
25. Chile, US$5.08bn

The report recommends that world leaders focus on curbing the opacity in the global financial system, which facilitates these outflows. Specifically, GFI maintains that:

* Governments should establish public registries of meaningful beneficial ownership information on all legal entities;
* Financial regulators should require that all banks in their country know the true beneficial owner(s) of any account opened in their financial institution;
* Government authorities should adopt and fully implement all of the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) anti-money laundering recommendations;
* Regulators and law enforcement authorities should ensure that all of the anti-money laundering regulations, which are already on the books, are strongly enforced;
* Policymakers should require multinational companies to publicly disclose their revenues, profits, losses, sales, taxes paid, subsidiaries, and staff levels on a country-by-country basis;
* All countries should actively participate in the worldwide movement towards the automatic exchange of tax information as endorsed by the OECD and the G20;
* Trade transactions involving tax haven jurisdictions should be treated with the highest level of scrutiny by customs, tax, and law enforcement officials;
* Governments should significantly boost their customs enforcement, by equipping and training officers to better detect intentional misinvoicing of trade transactions; and
* The United Nations should adopt a clear and concise Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to halve trade-related illicit financial flows by 2030 and similar language should be included in the outcome document of the Financing for Development Conference in July 2015.

#IJAsia14 ends, but solidarity sparks new beginnings for Asia

Julius Mariveles Leave a comment

SALAMAT PO. Domo arigato. Terimah Kasih. Thank you.

More than 300 delegates from 33 countries, 30 learning sessions, countless ideas, and stronger solidarity among journalists – all these in only two days.

Even good things must come to end. Or better still, spark new beginnings.

For starters, we are now taking small, steady steps to give birth to an Investigative Journalism Network for Southeast Asia, while our colleagues in South Asia, and in China and Hong Kong press on with parallel efforts at collaboration.

The editors and staff of the PCIJ would like to thank all those who have been part of Uncovering Asia: The First Asian Investigative Journalism Conference.

THank you, too, for the trust and friendship that the Global Investigative Journalism Network and all of you have reposed in PCIJ.

We hope to see you all again, online or in the next conference.

To know more about the PCIJ, we invite you to view this video short.

It’s here, it’s now: #IJAsia14,marketplace for muckraking

mcmangahas Leave a comment

By: DAVID E. KAPLAN, Global Investigative Journalism Network*

FIRST, the big news: In just over two weeks we’ll convene Uncovering Asia, the region’s first investigative journalism conference. Excitement is building, and we’ve got an extraordinary array of the best journalists from Japan to Pakistan coming our way – heading to Manila for a World’s Fair of muckraking from Nov. 22-24.

GIJN has teamed up with two great partners to help give Asian investigative journalism a boost: the Asian Media Programme of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the German foundation; and the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. We’ll have journalists from 25 countries talking about setting up networks, collaborating on stories, and sharing tips and data.

Why Asia? Why Now?

So why are we heading to Asia? That’s easy. It’s where most of humanity lives, and the demand for quality investigative reporting is enormous. More than 4.3 billion people call Asia home – that’s 60% of the global population. It has the world’s second and third largest economies, and its share of global GDP is expected to double. But the region is also among the weakest links in an emerging global community of investigative journalists.

Asia is home to 4.3 billion people, 60% of humanity.

GIJN is a network of networks. We have more than 100 member organizations from nearly 50 countries, and many of them have their own memberships across nations and regions. Over the past 20 years these groups – which today form the backbone of global investigative journalism – have spread to every continent. In North America we have Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Investigative News Network, and dozens of other nonprofits. In Europe we have Journalismfund.eu, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, Scoop, and also many more independent groups. In Africa there’s the Forum for African Investigative Reporters and, more recently, the African Network of Centers for Investigative Reporting. In the Middle East and North Africa there’s Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism. In Latin America we have the annual COLPIN conferences, growing networks like Connectas, and strong national associations like Brazil’s Abraji.

And in Asia? Not so much. No investigative networks. No annual conferences. No fund for investigative journalism. Of GIJN’s 107 members, only 5 are in Asia. All that needs to change.

Well, here’s the good news – it is in fact changing, and quickly. Our colleagues around the region tell us that Uncovering Asia is the right event at the right time. Fueled by the same forces that have made investigative reporting a force to be reckoned with elsewhere – globalization, computing power, mobile phones, and determined journalists — there are signs from Seoul to Islamabad that a new era of muckraking is at hand.

Sure, we’ve got huge challenges. Criminal libel laws are still on the books in many countries. China and Vietnam are among the world’s leading jailers of journalists. Traditional media are driven toward poorly reported scandals and sensation, not careful watchdog reporting. Journalists lack training and resources for in-depth reporting. Owners are too often in cahoots with the very people the media should be investigating. And it’s bloody dangerous out there. Too many of our colleagues from the Philippines to Pakistan have lost their lives simply for reporting the truth.

But history is on our side. A global marketplace means countries need to open up in order to compete. Smart leaders know that if they really want to fight corruption and promote public accountability, they need an investigative news media. Meanwhile, the Internet is bringing tools and techniques to our colleagues everywhere, and connecting journalists in unprecedented ways. Secrets are much harder to keep, while public records are more accessible than ever.

Asian investigative journalism nonprofits: A growth industry?

Major media plays a critical role in spreading investigative journalism around the world. But it is the nonprofits that have served as training centers, incubators, and models of excellence in the rapid growth of muckraking. And for years there was only one IJ nonprofit in Asia – the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, founded in 1989.

This is another reason we are heading to Manila – to mark and celebrate PCIJ’s 25 extraordinary years. In that quarter century, the Philippine Center has published more than 1,000 investigative reports, produced scores of documentaries, and launched some two dozen books. Its staff have run more than 120 seminars for journalists across Asia, and won 150 awards for their dogged work. PCIJ’s investigation in 2000 of then-President Joseph Estrada, which led to his impeachment, is taught in journalism schools as a case study in modern muckraking. Equally impressive, the PCIJ staff showed that an independent nonprofit could not only survive but thrive in a developing country, and its work over the years has served as a model for scores of nonprofit journalism centers around the world. That is worth heralding.

PCIJ helped inspire the Nepal Centre for Investigative Journalism, launched in 1996, which has been rejuvenated and is back doing first-rate work. And now look what has followed:

A Promising Start

These nonprofits and networks are, of course, in addition to the extraordinary work being done by mainstream media, both local and international. To name but a few: the New York Times work on the corrupt wealth of China’s leadership; Reuters’ projects on mistreatment of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority, and its Connected China data project; the Japanese media’s digging into the Fukushima nuclear disaster; the gutsy reporting by Chinese journalists from Caixin, Southern Weekend, and CCTV, among others; and a growing force of world-class reporters across South Asia, who refuse to accept government press releases and corporate payoffs as real journalism. And don’t forget the Philippine Daily Inquirer‘s exposés of pork barrel politics, determined digging by Indonesia’s Tempo magazine and Taiwan’s CommonWealth, and watchdog reporting by Malaysia’s Malaysiakini and Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post – these are but a few of the noteworthy efforts in recent years.

Journalism professors are playing a critical role, as well, training a new generation of journalists in how to dig, analyze data, and find documents. We’ve had tremendous response from top “J schools” in the region to Uncovering Asia. Among the schools which will be represented at the conference: the Ateneo de Manila University’s Asian Center for Journalism (Philippines), Asian College of Journalism (India), Chung-Ang University’s School of Journalism & Mass Communication (Korea), Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism (U.S.), Hong Kong University’s Journalism and Media Studies Centre (Hong Kong), and Waseda University’s Journalism School (Japan).

So, come join us in Manila if you can, and hear first-hand the reporters involved in charting the future of in-depth journalism. We’ll have more than 30 sessions ranging from tracking assets and dirty money to the latest data tools and how to set up your own investigative team. If you can’t join us, you can follow it all on Twitter at #IJAsia14. And don’t’ worry if you miss much. This isn’t the end of something big – it’s the beginning.

*Story originally titled “Why Asia? Why now?”

It’s here, it’s now: #IJAsia14,marketplace for muckraking

mcmangahas Leave a comment

By: DAVID E. KAPLAN, Global Investigative Journalism Network*

FIRST, the big news: In just over two weeks we’ll convene Uncovering Asia, the region’s first investigative journalism conference. Excitement is building, and we’ve got an extraordinary array of the best journalists from Japan to Pakistan coming our way – heading to Manila for a World’s Fair of muckraking from Nov. 22-24.

GIJN has teamed up with two great partners to help give Asian investigative journalism a boost: the Asian Media Programme of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the German foundation; and the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. We’ll have journalists from 25 countries talking about setting up networks, collaborating on stories, and sharing tips and data.

Why Asia? Why Now?

So why are we heading to Asia? That’s easy. It’s where most of humanity lives, and the demand for quality investigative reporting is enormous. More than 4.3 billion people call Asia home – that’s 60% of the global population. It has the world’s second and third largest economies, and its share of global GDP is expected to double. But the region is also among the weakest links in an emerging global community of investigative journalists.

Asia is home to 4.3 billion people, 60% of humanity.

GIJN is a network of networks. We have more than 100 member organizations from nearly 50 countries, and many of them have their own memberships across nations and regions. Over the past 20 years these groups – which today form the backbone of global investigative journalism – have spread to every continent. In North America we have Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Investigative News Network, and dozens of other nonprofits. In Europe we have Journalismfund.eu, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, Scoop, and also many more independent groups. In Africa there’s the Forum for African Investigative Reporters and, more recently, the African Network of Centers for Investigative Reporting. In the Middle East and North Africa there’s Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism. In Latin America we have the annual COLPIN conferences, growing networks like Connectas, and strong national associations like Brazil’s Abraji.

And in Asia? Not so much. No investigative networks. No annual conferences. No fund for investigative journalism. Of GIJN’s 107 members, only 5 are in Asia. All that needs to change.

Well, here’s the good news – it is in fact changing, and quickly. Our colleagues around the region tell us that Uncovering Asia is the right event at the right time. Fueled by the same forces that have made investigative reporting a force to be reckoned with elsewhere – globalization, computing power, mobile phones, and determined journalists — there are signs from Seoul to Islamabad that a new era of muckraking is at hand.

Sure, we’ve got huge challenges. Criminal libel laws are still on the books in many countries. China and Vietnam are among the world’s leading jailers of journalists. Traditional media are driven toward poorly reported scandals and sensation, not careful watchdog reporting. Journalists lack training and resources for in-depth reporting. Owners are too often in cahoots with the very people the media should be investigating. And it’s bloody dangerous out there. Too many of our colleagues from the Philippines to Pakistan have lost their lives simply for reporting the truth.

But history is on our side. A global marketplace means countries need to open up in order to compete. Smart leaders know that if they really want to fight corruption and promote public accountability, they need an investigative news media. Meanwhile, the Internet is bringing tools and techniques to our colleagues everywhere, and connecting journalists in unprecedented ways. Secrets are much harder to keep, while public records are more accessible than ever.

Asian investigative journalism nonprofits: A growth industry?

Major media plays a critical role in spreading investigative journalism around the world. But it is the nonprofits that have served as training centers, incubators, and models of excellence in the rapid growth of muckraking. And for years there was only one IJ nonprofit in Asia – the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, founded in 1989.

This is another reason we are heading to Manila – to mark and celebrate PCIJ’s 25 extraordinary years. In that quarter century, the Philippine Center has published more than 1,000 investigative reports, produced scores of documentaries, and launched some two dozen books. Its staff have run more than 120 seminars for journalists across Asia, and won 150 awards for their dogged work. PCIJ’s investigation in 2000 of then-President Joseph Estrada, which led to his impeachment, is taught in journalism schools as a case study in modern muckraking. Equally impressive, the PCIJ staff showed that an independent nonprofit could not only survive but thrive in a developing country, and its work over the years has served as a model for scores of nonprofit journalism centers around the world. That is worth heralding.

PCIJ helped inspire the Nepal Centre for Investigative Journalism, launched in 1996, which has been rejuvenated and is back doing first-rate work. And now look what has followed:

A Promising Start

These nonprofits and networks are, of course, in addition to the extraordinary work being done by mainstream media, both local and international. To name but a few: the New York Times work on the corrupt wealth of China’s leadership; Reuters’ projects on mistreatment of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority, and its Connected China data project; the Japanese media’s digging into the Fukushima nuclear disaster; the gutsy reporting by Chinese journalists from Caixin, Southern Weekend, and CCTV, among others; and a growing force of world-class reporters across South Asia, who refuse to accept government press releases and corporate payoffs as real journalism. And don’t forget the Philippine Daily Inquirer‘s exposés of pork barrel politics, determined digging by Indonesia’s Tempo magazine and Taiwan’s CommonWealth, and watchdog reporting by Malaysia’s Malaysiakini and Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post – these are but a few of the noteworthy efforts in recent years.

Journalism professors are playing a critical role, as well, training a new generation of journalists in how to dig, analyze data, and find documents. We’ve had tremendous response from top “J schools” in the region to Uncovering Asia. Among the schools which will be represented at the conference: the Ateneo de Manila University’s Asian Center for Journalism (Philippines), Asian College of Journalism (India), Chung-Ang University’s School of Journalism & Mass Communication (Korea), Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism (U.S.), Hong Kong University’s Journalism and Media Studies Centre (Hong Kong), and Waseda University’s Journalism School (Japan).

So, come join us in Manila if you can, and hear first-hand the reporters involved in charting the future of in-depth journalism. We’ll have more than 30 sessions ranging from tracking assets and dirty money to the latest data tools and how to set up your own investigative team. If you can’t join us, you can follow it all on Twitter at #IJAsia14. And don’t’ worry if you miss much. This isn’t the end of something big – it’s the beginning.

*Story originally titled “Why Asia? Why now?”

It’s here, it’s now: #IJAsia14,marketplace for muckraking

mcmangahas Leave a comment

By: DAVID E. KAPLAN, Global Investigative Journalism Network*

FIRST, the big news: In just over two weeks we’ll convene Uncovering Asia, the region’s first investigative journalism conference. Excitement is building, and we’ve got an extraordinary array of the best journalists from Japan to Pakistan coming our way – heading to Manila for a World’s Fair of muckraking from Nov. 22-24.

GIJN has teamed up with two great partners to help give Asian investigative journalism a boost: the Asian Media Programme of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the German foundation; and the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. We’ll have journalists from 25 countries talking about setting up networks, collaborating on stories, and sharing tips and data.

Why Asia? Why Now?

So why are we heading to Asia? That’s easy. It’s where most of humanity lives, and the demand for quality investigative reporting is enormous. More than 4.3 billion people call Asia home – that’s 60% of the global population. It has the world’s second and third largest economies, and its share of global GDP is expected to double. But the region is also among the weakest links in an emerging global community of investigative journalists.

Asia is home to 4.3 billion people, 60% of humanity.

GIJN is a network of networks. We have more than 100 member organizations from nearly 50 countries, and many of them have their own memberships across nations and regions. Over the past 20 years these groups – which today form the backbone of global investigative journalism – have spread to every continent. In North America we have Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Investigative News Network, and dozens of other nonprofits. In Europe we have Journalismfund.eu, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, Scoop, and also many more independent groups. In Africa there’s the Forum for African Investigative Reporters and, more recently, the African Network of Centers for Investigative Reporting. In the Middle East and North Africa there’s Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism. In Latin America we have the annual COLPIN conferences, growing networks like Connectas, and strong national associations like Brazil’s Abraji.

And in Asia? Not so much. No investigative networks. No annual conferences. No fund for investigative journalism. Of GIJN’s 107 members, only 5 are in Asia. All that needs to change.

Well, here’s the good news – it is in fact changing, and quickly. Our colleagues around the region tell us that Uncovering Asia is the right event at the right time. Fueled by the same forces that have made investigative reporting a force to be reckoned with elsewhere – globalization, computing power, mobile phones, and determined journalists — there are signs from Seoul to Islamabad that a new era of muckraking is at hand.

Sure, we’ve got huge challenges. Criminal libel laws are still on the books in many countries. China and Vietnam are among the world’s leading jailers of journalists. Traditional media are driven toward poorly reported scandals and sensation, not careful watchdog reporting. Journalists lack training and resources for in-depth reporting. Owners are too often in cahoots with the very people the media should be investigating. And it’s bloody dangerous out there. Too many of our colleagues from the Philippines to Pakistan have lost their lives simply for reporting the truth.

But history is on our side. A global marketplace means countries need to open up in order to compete. Smart leaders know that if they really want to fight corruption and promote public accountability, they need an investigative news media. Meanwhile, the Internet is bringing tools and techniques to our colleagues everywhere, and connecting journalists in unprecedented ways. Secrets are much harder to keep, while public records are more accessible than ever.

Asian investigative journalism nonprofits: A growth industry?

Major media plays a critical role in spreading investigative journalism around the world. But it is the nonprofits that have served as training centers, incubators, and models of excellence in the rapid growth of muckraking. And for years there was only one IJ nonprofit in Asia – the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, founded in 1989.

This is another reason we are heading to Manila – to mark and celebrate PCIJ’s 25 extraordinary years. In that quarter century, the Philippine Center has published more than 1,000 investigative reports, produced scores of documentaries, and launched some two dozen books. Its staff have run more than 120 seminars for journalists across Asia, and won 150 awards for their dogged work. PCIJ’s investigation in 2000 of then-President Joseph Estrada, which led to his impeachment, is taught in journalism schools as a case study in modern muckraking. Equally impressive, the PCIJ staff showed that an independent nonprofit could not only survive but thrive in a developing country, and its work over the years has served as a model for scores of nonprofit journalism centers around the world. That is worth heralding.

PCIJ helped inspire the Nepal Centre for Investigative Journalism, launched in 1996, which has been rejuvenated and is back doing first-rate work. And now look what has followed:

A Promising Start

These nonprofits and networks are, of course, in addition to the extraordinary work being done by mainstream media, both local and international. To name but a few: the New York Times work on the corrupt wealth of China’s leadership; Reuters’ projects on mistreatment of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority, and its Connected China data project; the Japanese media’s digging into the Fukushima nuclear disaster; the gutsy reporting by Chinese journalists from Caixin, Southern Weekend, and CCTV, among others; and a growing force of world-class reporters across South Asia, who refuse to accept government press releases and corporate payoffs as real journalism. And don’t forget the Philippine Daily Inquirer‘s exposés of pork barrel politics, determined digging by Indonesia’s Tempo magazine and Taiwan’s CommonWealth, and watchdog reporting by Malaysia’s Malaysiakini and Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post – these are but a few of the noteworthy efforts in recent years.

Journalism professors are playing a critical role, as well, training a new generation of journalists in how to dig, analyze data, and find documents. We’ve had tremendous response from top “J schools” in the region to Uncovering Asia. Among the schools which will be represented at the conference: the Ateneo de Manila University’s Asian Center for Journalism (Philippines), Asian College of Journalism (India), Chung-Ang University’s School of Journalism & Mass Communication (Korea), Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism (U.S.), Hong Kong University’s Journalism and Media Studies Centre (Hong Kong), and Waseda University’s Journalism School (Japan).

So, come join us in Manila if you can, and hear first-hand the reporters involved in charting the future of in-depth journalism. We’ll have more than 30 sessions ranging from tracking assets and dirty money to the latest data tools and how to set up your own investigative team. If you can’t join us, you can follow it all on Twitter at #IJAsia14. And don’t’ worry if you miss much. This isn’t the end of something big – it’s the beginning.

*Story originally titled “Why Asia? Why now?”