New issue of GIZ’s ‘akzente’ magazine out now

Openness and transparency are seen as key requirements in politics, business and society. Christian Hiller von Gaertringen’s article discusses the benefits of transparency and describes the turning point beyond which openness can do more harm than good. Christine Hohmann-Dennhardt, a member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, defines the same fine line from a DAX company’s perspective in an interview.

An illustration of GIZ’s own efforts to make its work more transparent is the new ‘Project data’ page on the GIZ website. The ‘Special’ feature in this issue explains the figures and how they are produced.

Alongside the main theme, the other reports in this issue of akzente take us to Norway, the Middle East and Asia. Author Bettina Mittelstrass accompanied Mongolian politicians, businesspeople and trade unionists on a study visit to Oslo and Berlin, where they found out how to improve health and safety at work. A young baker from the Palestinian territories reflects on her newfound success as a businesswoman and describes how her personal journey is closely linked to her vocational training. In Bangladesh, two survivors of the Rana Plaza garment factory disaster talk about their new start. And a report from Viet Nam shows how replanted mangrove forests are protecting rice fields from increasingly rough seas resulting from climate change.

akzente is now available as an app for tablets. To read the digital issue, simply download the app free of charge from the usual stores.