write an argumentative essay on the topic corruption destroys a nation

Essay on Corruption for Students and Children

500+ words essay on corruption.

Essay on Corruption – Corruption refers to a form of criminal activity or dishonesty. It refers to an evil act by an individual or a group. Most noteworthy, this act compromises the rights and privileges of others. Furthermore, Corruption primarily includes activities like bribery or embezzlement. However, Corruption can take place in many ways. Most probably, people in positions of authority are susceptible to Corruption. Corruption certainly reflects greedy and selfish behavior.

Methods of Corruption

First of all, Bribery is the most common method of Corruption. Bribery involves the improper use of favours and gifts in exchange for personal gain. Furthermore, the types of favours are diverse. Above all, the favours include money, gifts, company shares, sexual favours, employment , entertainment, and political benefits. Also, personal gain can be – giving preferential treatment and overlooking crime.

Embezzlement refers to the act of withholding assets for the purpose of theft. Furthermore, it takes place by one or more individuals who were entrusted with these assets. Above all, embezzlement is a type of financial fraud.

The graft is a global form of Corruption. Most noteworthy, it refers to the illegal use of a politician’s authority for personal gain. Furthermore, a popular way for the graft is misdirecting public funds for the benefit of politicians .

Extortion is another major method of Corruption. It means to obtain property, money or services illegally. Above all, this obtainment takes place by coercing individuals or organizations. Hence, Extortion is quite similar to blackmail.

Favouritism and nepotism is quite an old form of Corruption still in usage. This refers to a person favouring one’s own relatives and friends to jobs. This is certainly a very unfair practice. This is because many deserving candidates fail to get jobs.

Abuse of discretion is another method of Corruption. Here, a person misuses one’s power and authority. An example can be a judge unjustly dismissing a criminal’s case.

Finally, influence peddling is the last method here. This refers to illegally using one’s influence with the government or other authorized individuals. Furthermore, it takes place in order to obtain preferential treatment or favour.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Ways of Stopping Corruption

One important way of preventing Corruption is to give a better salary in a government job. Many government employees receive pretty low salaries. Therefore, they resort to bribery to meet their expenses. So, government employees should receive higher salaries. Consequently, high salaries would reduce their motivation and resolve to engage in bribery.

Tough laws are very important for stopping Corruption. Above all, strict punishments need to be meted out to guilty individuals. Furthermore, there should be an efficient and quick implementation of strict laws.

Applying cameras in workplaces is an excellent way to prevent corruption. Above all, many individuals would refrain from indulging in Corruption due to fear of being caught. Furthermore, these individuals would have otherwise engaged in Corruption.

The government must make sure to keep inflation low. Due to the rise in prices, many people feel their incomes to be too low. Consequently, this increases Corruption among the masses. Businessmen raise prices to sell their stock of goods at higher prices. Furthermore, the politician supports them due to the benefits they receive.

To sum it up, Corruption is a great evil of society. This evil should be quickly eliminated from society. Corruption is the poison that has penetrated the minds of many individuals these days. Hopefully, with consistent political and social efforts, we can get rid of Corruption.

{ “@context”: “https://schema.org”, “@type”: “FAQPage”, “mainEntity”: [{ “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “What is Bribery?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Bribery refers to improper use of favours and gifts in exchange for personal gain.”} }, { “@type”: “Question”, “name”: ” How high salaries help in stopping Corruption?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”:”High salaries help in meeting the expenses of individuals. Furthermore, high salaries reduce the motivation and resolve to engage in bribery.”} }] }

Customize your course in 30 seconds

Which class are you in.

• Travelling Essay
• Picnic Essay
• Our Country Essay
• My Parents Essay
• Essay on Favourite Personality
• Essay on Memorable Day of My Life
• Essay on Knowledge is Power
• Essay on Gurpurab
• Essay on My Favourite Season
• Essay on Types of Sports

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Download the App

5 Essays About Corruption

Internationally, there is no legal definition of corruption, but it includes bribery, illegal profit, abuse of power, embezzlement, and more. Corrupt activities are illegal, so they are discreet and done in secrecy. Depending on how deep the corruption goes, there may be many people aware of what’s going on, but they choose to do nothing because they’ve been bribed or they’re afraid of retaliation. Any system can become corrupt. Here are five essays that explore where corruption exists, its effects, and how it can be addressed.

Learn more about anti-corruption in a free course .

Corruption in Global Health: The Open Secret

Dr. Patricia J. Garcia The Lancet (2019)

In this published lecture, Dr. Garcia uses her experience as a researcher, public health worker, and Minister of Health to draw attention to corruption in health systems. She explores the extent of the problem, its origins, and what’s happening in the present day. Additional topics include ideas on how to address the problem and why players like policymakers and researchers need to think about corruption as a disease. Dr. Garcia states that corruption is one of the most significant barriers to global universal health coverage.

Dr. Garcia is the former Minister of Health of Peru and a leader in global health. She also works as a professor and researcher/trainer in global health, STI/HIV, HPV, medical informatics, and reproductive health. She’s the first Peruvian to be appointed as a member to the United States National Academy of Medicine

‘Are women leaders less corrupt? No, but they shake things up”

Stella Dawson Reuters (2012)

This piece takes a closer look at the idea that more women in power will mean less corruption. Reality is more complicated than that. Women are not less vulnerable to corruption in terms of their resistance to greed, but there is a link between more female politicians and less corruption. The reason appears to be that women are simply more likely to achieve more power in democratic, open systems that are less tolerant of corruption. A better gender balance also means more effective problem-solving. This piece goes on to give some examples of lower corruption in systems with more women and the complexities. While this particular essay is old, newer research still supports that more women in power is linked to better ethics and lower corruption levels into systems, though women are not inherently less corrupt.

Stella Dawson left Reuters in 2015, where she worked as a global editor for economics and markets. At the Thomson Reuters Foundation and 100Reporters, she headed a network of reporters focusing on corruption issues. Dawson has been featured as a commentator for BBC, CNB, C-Span, and public radio.

“Transparency isn’t the solution to corruption – here’s why”

David Riverios Garcia One Young World

Many believe that corruption can be solved with transparency, but in this piece, Garcia explains why that isn’t the case. He writes that governments have exploited new technology (like open data platforms and government-monitoring acts) to appear like they care about corruption, but, in Garcia’s words, “transparency means nothing without accountability.” Garcia focuses on corruption in Latin America, including Paraguay where Garcia is originally from. He describes his background as a young anti-corruption activist, what he’s learned, and what he considers the real solution to corruption.

At the time of this essay’s publication, David Riverios Garcia was an Open Young World Ambassador. He ran a large-scale anti-corruption campaign (reAccion Paraguay), stopping corruption among local high school authorities. He’s also worked on poverty relief and education reform. The Ministry of Education recognized him for his achievements and in 2009, he was selected by the US Department of State as one of 10 Paraguayan Youth Ambassadors.

“What the World Could Teach America About Policing”

Yasmeen Serhan The Atlantic (2020)

The American police system has faced significant challenges with public trust for decades. In 2020, those issues have erupted and the country is at a tipping point. Corruption is rampant through the system. What can be done? In this piece, the author gives examples of how other countries have managed reform. These reforms include first dismantling the existing system, then providing better training. Once that system is off the ground, there needs to be oversight. Looking at other places in the world that have successfully made radical changes is essential for real change in the United States.

Atlantic staff writer Yasmeen Serhan is based in London.

“$2.6 Trillion Is Lost to Corruption Every Year — And It Hurts the Poor the Most”

Joe McCarthy Global Citizen (2018)

This short piece is a good introduction to just how significant the effects of corruption are. Schools, hospitals, and other essential services suffer, while the poorest and most vulnerable society carry the heaviest burdens. Because of corruption, these services don’t get the funding they need. Cycles of corruption erode citizens’ trust in systems and powerful government entities. What can be done to end the cycle?

Joe McCarthy is a staff writer for Global Citizen. He writes about global events and environmental issues.

You may also like

15 Inspiring Quotes for Black History Month

10 Inspiring Ways Women Are Fighting for Equality

15 Trusted Charities Fighting for Clean Water

15 Trusted Charities Supporting Trans People

15 Political Issues We Must Address

15 Trusted Charities Fighting for LGBTQ+ Rights

16 Inspiring Civil Rights Leaders You Should Know

15 Trusted Charities Fighting for Housing Rights

15 Examples of Gender Inequality in Everyday Life

11 Approaches to Alleviate World Hunger 

15 Facts About Malala Yousafzai

12 Ways Poverty Affects Society

About the author, emmaline soken-huberty.

Emmaline Soken-Huberty is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon. She started to become interested in human rights while attending college, eventually getting a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism. LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, and climate change are of special concern to her. In her spare time, she can be found reading or enjoying Oregon’s natural beauty with her husband and dog.

• Search Menu

Sign in through your institution

• Browse content in Arts and Humanities
• Browse content in Archaeology
• Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Archaeology
• Archaeological Methodology and Techniques
• Archaeology by Region
• Archaeology of Religion
• Archaeology of Trade and Exchange
• Biblical Archaeology
• Contemporary and Public Archaeology
• Environmental Archaeology
• Historical Archaeology
• History and Theory of Archaeology
• Industrial Archaeology
• Landscape Archaeology
• Mortuary Archaeology
• Prehistoric Archaeology
• Underwater Archaeology
• Urban Archaeology
• Zooarchaeology
• Browse content in Architecture
• Architectural Structure and Design
• History of Architecture
• Residential and Domestic Buildings
• Theory of Architecture
• Browse content in Art
• Art Subjects and Themes
• History of Art
• Industrial and Commercial Art
• Theory of Art
• Biographical Studies
• Byzantine Studies
• Browse content in Classical Studies
• Classical History
• Classical Philosophy
• Classical Mythology
• Classical Literature
• Classical Reception
• Classical Art and Architecture
• Classical Oratory and Rhetoric
• Greek and Roman Papyrology
• Greek and Roman Epigraphy
• Greek and Roman Law
• Greek and Roman Archaeology
• Late Antiquity
• Religion in the Ancient World
• Social History
• Digital Humanities
• Browse content in History
• Colonialism and Imperialism
• Diplomatic History
• Environmental History
• Genealogy, Heraldry, Names, and Honours
• Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing
• Historical Geography
• History by Period
• History of Emotions
• History of Agriculture
• History of Education
• History of Gender and Sexuality
• Industrial History
• Intellectual History
• International History
• Labour History
• Legal and Constitutional History
• Local and Family History
• Maritime History
• Military History
• National Liberation and Post-Colonialism
• Oral History
• Political History
• Public History
• Regional and National History
• Revolutions and Rebellions
• Slavery and Abolition of Slavery
• Social and Cultural History
• Theory, Methods, and Historiography
• Urban History
• World History
• Browse content in Language Teaching and Learning
• Language Learning (Specific Skills)
• Language Teaching Theory and Methods
• Browse content in Linguistics
• Applied Linguistics
• Cognitive Linguistics
• Computational Linguistics
• Forensic Linguistics
• Grammar, Syntax and Morphology
• Historical and Diachronic Linguistics
• History of English
• Language Evolution
• Language Reference
• Language Acquisition
• Language Variation
• Language Families
• Lexicography
• Linguistic Anthropology
• Linguistic Theories
• Linguistic Typology
• Phonetics and Phonology
• Psycholinguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Translation and Interpretation
• Writing Systems
• Browse content in Literature
• Bibliography
• Children's Literature Studies
• Literary Studies (Romanticism)
• Literary Studies (American)
• Literary Studies (Asian)
• Literary Studies (European)
• Literary Studies (Eco-criticism)
• Literary Studies (Modernism)
• Literary Studies - World
• Literary Studies (1500 to 1800)
• Literary Studies (19th Century)
• Literary Studies (20th Century onwards)
• Literary Studies (African American Literature)
• Literary Studies (British and Irish)
• Literary Studies (Early and Medieval)
• Literary Studies (Fiction, Novelists, and Prose Writers)
• Literary Studies (Gender Studies)
• Literary Studies (Graphic Novels)
• Literary Studies (History of the Book)
• Literary Studies (Plays and Playwrights)
• Literary Studies (Poetry and Poets)
• Literary Studies (Postcolonial Literature)
• Literary Studies (Queer Studies)
• Literary Studies (Science Fiction)
• Literary Studies (Travel Literature)
• Literary Studies (War Literature)
• Literary Studies (Women's Writing)
• Literary Theory and Cultural Studies
• Mythology and Folklore
• Shakespeare Studies and Criticism
• Browse content in Media Studies
• Browse content in Music
• Applied Music
• Dance and Music
• Ethics in Music
• Ethnomusicology
• Gender and Sexuality in Music
• Medicine and Music
• Music Cultures
• Music and Media
• Music and Religion
• Music and Culture
• Music Education and Pedagogy
• Music Theory and Analysis
• Musical Scores, Lyrics, and Libretti
• Musical Structures, Styles, and Techniques
• Musicology and Music History
• Performance Practice and Studies
• Race and Ethnicity in Music
• Sound Studies
• Browse content in Performing Arts
• Browse content in Philosophy
• Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art
• Epistemology
• Feminist Philosophy
• History of Western Philosophy
• Metaphysics
• Moral Philosophy
• Non-Western Philosophy
• Philosophy of Language
• Philosophy of Mind
• Philosophy of Perception
• Philosophy of Science
• Philosophy of Action
• Philosophy of Law
• Philosophy of Religion
• Philosophy of Mathematics and Logic
• Practical Ethics
• Social and Political Philosophy
• Browse content in Religion
• Biblical Studies
• Christianity
• East Asian Religions
• History of Religion
• Judaism and Jewish Studies
• Qumran Studies
• Religion and Education
• Religion and Health
• Religion and Politics
• Religion and Science
• Religion and Law
• Religion and Art, Literature, and Music
• Religious Studies
• Browse content in Society and Culture
• Cookery, Food, and Drink
• Cultural Studies
• Customs and Traditions
• Ethical Issues and Debates
• Hobbies, Games, Arts and Crafts
• Natural world, Country Life, and Pets
• Popular Beliefs and Controversial Knowledge
• Sports and Outdoor Recreation
• Technology and Society
• Travel and Holiday
• Visual Culture
• Browse content in Law
• Arbitration
• Browse content in Company and Commercial Law
• Commercial Law
• Company Law
• Browse content in Comparative Law
• Systems of Law
• Competition Law
• Browse content in Constitutional and Administrative Law
• Government Powers
• Judicial Review
• Local Government Law
• Military and Defence Law
• Parliamentary and Legislative Practice
• Construction Law
• Contract Law
• Browse content in Criminal Law
• Criminal Procedure
• Criminal Evidence Law
• Sentencing and Punishment
• Employment and Labour Law
• Environment and Energy Law
• Browse content in Financial Law
• Banking Law
• Insolvency Law
• History of Law
• Human Rights and Immigration
• Intellectual Property Law
• Browse content in International Law
• Private International Law and Conflict of Laws
• Public International Law
• IT and Communications Law
• Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law
• Law and Politics
• Law and Society
• Browse content in Legal System and Practice
• Courts and Procedure
• Legal Skills and Practice
• Primary Sources of Law
• Regulation of Legal Profession
• Medical and Healthcare Law
• Browse content in Policing
• Criminal Investigation and Detection
• Police and Security Services
• Police Procedure and Law
• Police Regional Planning
• Browse content in Property Law
• Personal Property Law
• Study and Revision
• Terrorism and National Security Law
• Browse content in Trusts Law
• Wills and Probate or Succession
• Browse content in Medicine and Health
• Browse content in Allied Health Professions
• Arts Therapies
• Clinical Science
• Dietetics and Nutrition
• Occupational Therapy
• Operating Department Practice
• Physiotherapy
• Radiography
• Speech and Language Therapy
• Browse content in Anaesthetics
• General Anaesthesia
• Neuroanaesthesia
• Clinical Neuroscience
• Browse content in Clinical Medicine
• Acute Medicine
• Cardiovascular Medicine
• Clinical Genetics
• Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
• Dermatology
• Endocrinology and Diabetes
• Gastroenterology
• Genito-urinary Medicine
• Geriatric Medicine
• Infectious Diseases
• Medical Toxicology
• Medical Oncology
• Pain Medicine
• Palliative Medicine
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Respiratory Medicine and Pulmonology
• Rheumatology
• Sleep Medicine
• Sports and Exercise Medicine
• Community Medical Services
• Critical Care
• Emergency Medicine
• Forensic Medicine
• Haematology
• History of Medicine
• Browse content in Medical Skills
• Clinical Skills
• Communication Skills
• Nursing Skills
• Surgical Skills
• Browse content in Medical Dentistry
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
• Paediatric Dentistry
• Restorative Dentistry and Orthodontics
• Surgical Dentistry
• Medical Ethics
• Medical Statistics and Methodology
• Browse content in Neurology
• Clinical Neurophysiology
• Neuropathology
• Nursing Studies
• Browse content in Obstetrics and Gynaecology
• Gynaecology
• Occupational Medicine
• Ophthalmology
• Otolaryngology (ENT)
• Browse content in Paediatrics
• Neonatology
• Browse content in Pathology
• Chemical Pathology
• Clinical Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics
• Histopathology
• Medical Microbiology and Virology
• Patient Education and Information
• Browse content in Pharmacology
• Psychopharmacology
• Browse content in Popular Health
• Caring for Others
• Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Self-help and Personal Development
• Browse content in Preclinical Medicine
• Cell Biology
• Molecular Biology and Genetics
• Reproduction, Growth and Development
• Primary Care
• Professional Development in Medicine
• Browse content in Psychiatry
• Addiction Medicine
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• Forensic Psychiatry
• Learning Disabilities
• Old Age Psychiatry
• Psychotherapy
• Browse content in Public Health and Epidemiology
• Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Browse content in Radiology
• Clinical Radiology
• Interventional Radiology
• Nuclear Medicine
• Radiation Oncology
• Reproductive Medicine
• Browse content in Surgery
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Gastro-intestinal and Colorectal Surgery
• General Surgery
• Neurosurgery
• Paediatric Surgery
• Peri-operative Care
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Transplant Surgery
• Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery
• Vascular Surgery
• Browse content in Science and Mathematics
• Browse content in Biological Sciences
• Aquatic Biology
• Biochemistry
• Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
• Developmental Biology
• Ecology and Conservation
• Evolutionary Biology
• Genetics and Genomics
• Microbiology
• Molecular and Cell Biology
• Natural History
• Plant Sciences and Forestry
• Research Methods in Life Sciences
• Structural Biology
• Systems Biology
• Zoology and Animal Sciences
• Browse content in Chemistry
• Analytical Chemistry
• Computational Chemistry
• Crystallography
• Environmental Chemistry
• Industrial Chemistry
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Materials Chemistry
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Mineralogy and Gems
• Organic Chemistry
• Physical Chemistry
• Polymer Chemistry
• Study and Communication Skills in Chemistry
• Theoretical Chemistry
• Browse content in Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Architecture and Logic Design
• Game Studies
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Mathematical Theory of Computation
• Programming Languages
• Software Engineering
• Systems Analysis and Design
• Virtual Reality
• Browse content in Computing
• Business Applications
• Computer Security
• Computer Games
• Computer Networking and Communications
• Digital Lifestyle
• Graphical and Digital Media Applications
• Operating Systems
• Browse content in Earth Sciences and Geography
• Atmospheric Sciences
• Environmental Geography
• Geology and the Lithosphere
• Maps and Map-making
• Meteorology and Climatology
• Oceanography and Hydrology
• Palaeontology
• Physical Geography and Topography
• Regional Geography
• Soil Science
• Urban Geography
• Browse content in Engineering and Technology
• Agriculture and Farming
• Biological Engineering
• Civil Engineering, Surveying, and Building
• Electronics and Communications Engineering
• Energy Technology
• Engineering (General)
• Environmental Science, Engineering, and Technology
• History of Engineering and Technology
• Mechanical Engineering and Materials
• Technology of Industrial Chemistry
• Transport Technology and Trades
• Browse content in Environmental Science
• Applied Ecology (Environmental Science)
• Conservation of the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Environmental Sustainability
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Environmental Science)
• Management of Land and Natural Resources (Environmental Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environmental Science)
• Nuclear Issues (Environmental Science)
• Pollution and Threats to the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Environmental Science)
• History of Science and Technology
• Browse content in Materials Science
• Ceramics and Glasses
• Composite Materials
• Metals, Alloying, and Corrosion
• Nanotechnology
• Browse content in Mathematics
• Applied Mathematics
• Biomathematics and Statistics
• History of Mathematics
• Mathematical Education
• Mathematical Finance
• Mathematical Analysis
• Numerical and Computational Mathematics
• Probability and Statistics
• Pure Mathematics
• Browse content in Neuroscience
• Cognition and Behavioural Neuroscience
• Development of the Nervous System
• Disorders of the Nervous System
• History of Neuroscience
• Invertebrate Neurobiology
• Molecular and Cellular Systems
• Neuroendocrinology and Autonomic Nervous System
• Neuroscientific Techniques
• Sensory and Motor Systems
• Browse content in Physics
• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
• Biological and Medical Physics
• Classical Mechanics
• Computational Physics
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Electromagnetism, Optics, and Acoustics
• History of Physics
• Mathematical and Statistical Physics
• Measurement Science
• Nuclear Physics
• Particles and Fields
• Plasma Physics
• Quantum Physics
• Relativity and Gravitation
• Semiconductor and Mesoscopic Physics
• Browse content in Psychology
• Affective Sciences
• Clinical Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Criminal and Forensic Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Educational Psychology
• Evolutionary Psychology
• Health Psychology
• History and Systems in Psychology
• Music Psychology
• Neuropsychology
• Organizational Psychology
• Psychological Assessment and Testing
• Psychology of Human-Technology Interaction
• Psychology Professional Development and Training
• Research Methods in Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Browse content in Social Sciences
• Browse content in Anthropology
• Anthropology of Religion
• Human Evolution
• Medical Anthropology
• Physical Anthropology
• Regional Anthropology
• Social and Cultural Anthropology
• Theory and Practice of Anthropology
• Browse content in Business and Management
• Business Ethics
• Business Strategy
• Business History
• Business and Technology
• Business and Government
• Business and the Environment
• Comparative Management
• Corporate Governance
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Entrepreneurship
• Health Management
• Human Resource Management
• Industrial and Employment Relations
• Industry Studies
• Information and Communication Technologies
• International Business
• Knowledge Management
• Management and Management Techniques
• Operations Management
• Organizational Theory and Behaviour
• Pensions and Pension Management
• Public and Nonprofit Management
• Strategic Management
• Supply Chain Management
• Browse content in Criminology and Criminal Justice
• Criminal Justice
• Criminology
• Forms of Crime
• International and Comparative Criminology
• Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice
• Development Studies
• Browse content in Economics
• Agricultural, Environmental, and Natural Resource Economics
• Asian Economics
• Behavioural Finance
• Behavioural Economics and Neuroeconomics
• Econometrics and Mathematical Economics
• Economic History
• Economic Systems
• Economic Methodology
• Economic Development and Growth
• Financial Markets
• Financial Institutions and Services
• General Economics and Teaching
• Health, Education, and Welfare
• History of Economic Thought
• International Economics
• Labour and Demographic Economics
• Law and Economics
• Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics
• Microeconomics
• Public Economics
• Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics
• Welfare Economics
• Browse content in Education
• Adult Education and Continuous Learning
• Care and Counselling of Students
• Early Childhood and Elementary Education
• Educational Equipment and Technology
• Educational Strategies and Policy
• Higher and Further Education
• Organization and Management of Education
• Philosophy and Theory of Education
• Schools Studies
• Secondary Education
• Teaching of a Specific Subject
• Teaching of Specific Groups and Special Educational Needs
• Teaching Skills and Techniques
• Browse content in Environment
• Applied Ecology (Social Science)
• Climate Change
• Conservation of the Environment (Social Science)
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Social Science)
• Management of Land and Natural Resources (Social Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environment)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Social Science)
• Sustainability
• Browse content in Human Geography
• Cultural Geography
• Economic Geography
• Political Geography
• Browse content in Interdisciplinary Studies
• Communication Studies
• Museums, Libraries, and Information Sciences
• Browse content in Politics
• African Politics
• Asian Politics
• Chinese Politics
• Comparative Politics
• Conflict Politics
• Elections and Electoral Studies
• Environmental Politics
• Ethnic Politics
• European Union
• Foreign Policy
• Gender and Politics
• Human Rights and Politics
• Indian Politics
• International Relations
• International Organization (Politics)
• International Political Economy
• Irish Politics
• Latin American Politics
• Middle Eastern Politics
• Political Behaviour
• Political Economy
• Political Institutions
• Political Methodology
• Political Communication
• Political Philosophy
• Political Sociology
• Political Theory
• Politics and Law
• Politics of Development
• Public Policy
• Public Administration
• Qualitative Political Methodology
• Quantitative Political Methodology
• Regional Political Studies
• Russian Politics
• Security Studies
• State and Local Government
• UK Politics
• US Politics
• Browse content in Regional and Area Studies
• African Studies
• Asian Studies
• East Asian Studies
• Japanese Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Middle Eastern Studies
• Native American Studies
• Scottish Studies
• Browse content in Research and Information
• Research Methods
• Browse content in Social Work
• Addictions and Substance Misuse
• Adoption and Fostering
• Care of the Elderly
• Child and Adolescent Social Work
• Couple and Family Social Work
• Direct Practice and Clinical Social Work
• Emergency Services
• Human Behaviour and the Social Environment
• International and Global Issues in Social Work
• Mental and Behavioural Health
• Social Justice and Human Rights
• Social Policy and Advocacy
• Social Work and Crime and Justice
• Social Work Macro Practice
• Social Work Practice Settings
• Social Work Research and Evidence-based Practice
• Welfare and Benefit Systems
• Browse content in Sociology
• Childhood Studies
• Community Development
• Comparative and Historical Sociology
• Economic Sociology
• Gender and Sexuality
• Gerontology and Ageing
• Health, Illness, and Medicine
• Marriage and the Family
• Migration Studies
• Occupations, Professions, and Work
• Organizations
• Population and Demography
• Race and Ethnicity
• Social Theory
• Social Movements and Social Change
• Social Research and Statistics
• Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
• Sociology of Religion
• Sociology of Education
• Sport and Leisure
• Urban and Rural Studies
• Browse content in Warfare and Defence
• Defence Strategy, Planning, and Research
• Land Forces and Warfare
• Military Administration
• Military Life and Institutions
• Naval Forces and Warfare
• Other Warfare and Defence Issues
• Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution
• Weapons and Equipment

• < Previous chapter
• Next chapter >

2 (page 18) p. 18 Why corruption is a problem

• Published: April 2015
• Cite Icon Cite
• Permissions Icon Permissions

Corruption impacts upon individuals, groups, and organizations in numerous ways. ‘Why corruption is a problem’ considers the negative effects of corruption in terms of social, environmental, economic, politico-legal, security-related, and international implications, using examples from around the world. The impact of particular acts of corruption is often on several areas simultaneously. Some well-regarded analysts have argued that corruption can sometimes be beneficial, but there is widespread agreement that even if corruption may, in some specific situations, be beneficial, this is only ever short term; eventually, the costs of corruption invariably outweigh the benefits.

Personal account

• Sign in with email/username & password
• Get email alerts
• Save searches
• Purchase content
• Activate your purchase/trial code
• Add your ORCID iD

Institutional access

Sign in with a library card.

• Sign in with username/password
• Recommend to your librarian
• Institutional account management
• Get help with access

Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:

IP based access

Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account.

Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Shibboleth/Open Athens technology is used to provide single sign-on between your institution’s website and Oxford Academic.

• Click Sign in through your institution.
• Select your institution from the list provided, which will take you to your institution's website to sign in.
• When on the institution site, please use the credentials provided by your institution. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.
• Following successful sign in, you will be returned to Oxford Academic.

If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institution’s website, please contact your librarian or administrator.

Enter your library card number to sign in. If you cannot sign in, please contact your librarian.

Society Members

Society member access to a journal is achieved in one of the following ways:

Sign in through society site

Many societies offer single sign-on between the society website and Oxford Academic. If you see ‘Sign in through society site’ in the sign in pane within a journal:

• Click Sign in through society site.
• When on the society site, please use the credentials provided by that society. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.

If you do not have a society account or have forgotten your username or password, please contact your society.

Sign in using a personal account

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. See below.

A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions.

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members.

Viewing your signed in accounts

Click the account icon in the top right to:

• View your signed in personal account and access account management features.
• View the institutional accounts that are providing access.

Signed in but can't access content

Oxford Academic is home to a wide variety of products. The institutional subscription may not cover the content that you are trying to access. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian.

For librarians and administrators, your personal account also provides access to institutional account management. Here you will find options to view and activate subscriptions, manage institutional settings and access options, access usage statistics, and more.

Our books are available by subscription or purchase to libraries and institutions.

• About Oxford Academic
• Publish journals with us
• University press partners
• What we publish
• New features  
• Open access
• Rights and permissions
• Accessibility
• Advertising
• Media enquiries
• Oxford University Press
• Oxford Languages
• University of Oxford

Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide

• Copyright © 2024 Oxford University Press
• Cookie settings
• Cookie policy
• Privacy policy
• Legal notice

This Feature Is Available To Subscribers Only

Sign In or Create an Account

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

For full access to this pdf, sign in to an existing account, or purchase an annual subscription.

We use cookies to enhance our website for you. Proceed if you agree to this policy or learn more about it.

• Essay Database >
• Essay Examples >
• Essays Topics >
• Essay on Government

Free Bribery And Corruption Argumentative Essay Sample

Type of paper: Argumentative Essay

Topic: Government , Corruption , Crime , Social Issues , Politics , Company , White Collar Crime , Money

Words: 1700

Published: 03/05/2020

ORDER PAPER LIKE THIS

Bribery and corruption are two related vices that are prevalent in virtually all global societies. Bribery is defined as the act of giving or receiving something with the core intention of influencing the actions of the recipient. These actions most often than not induce the recipient to carry out illegal, dishonest or activities that breach trust in the conduct of business. Corruption on the other hand focuses on the misuse of public office, rank, or status for one’s personal gain (OCSE, 2000). Bribery and corruption happen to be impediments to both global and national development. Countries and organizations are adversely affected by these vices. The global economies experience negative growth with the World Bank estimating that at least 0.5% of GDP is lost through these vices annually. Engaging in bribery and corruption has also been ranked as one of the main causes of unfavorable business environment. It also leads to the flourishing of organized crime and the eventual undermining of the rule of law. Moreover, the two vices impair the economic development of global nations eroding public trust in institutions as well as challenging democratic principles that many countries subscribe to. The two vices, bribery and corruption, are prevalent or thrive in our societies particularly in the public sector due to various factors and circumstances. Government contracts are one of the causes of the prevalence of corruption and bribery in the public sector. These contracts involve large sums of money, which attract a sizeable number of competing applicants. This creates room for bribery and corruption to influence this tendering process in favor of individuals and organizations (Tavits, 2005). It also leads to the breach of trusts and other integrity related elements in public tenders and activities. The government benefits also enhance the prevalence of bribery and corruption in the public sector. These benefits include subsidies, pensions, favorable prices, and exchange rates. Bribes and corrupt tendencies may influence the way these benefits are allocated or extended to organizations and individuals. The generation of the government revenue may also lead to increased bribery and corruption levels in the public sector. It is prudent to note that the government generates its revenue from fees, licences, taxes, public utility charges and custom duties. All these avenues can encourage individuals and businesses to bribe or use corrupt antics to ensure they remit less to the government. The bribes for instance, may be proposed or suggested by the taxpayer or the tax collectors. Time and regulatory avoidance is the other factor that encourages bribery and corruption within the public sector. Much of the public processes are characterized by lengthy and detailed procedures. Bribes and corrupt deals can speed up these public processes such as issuance of permits and licenses. Bribery and corruption may also be enhanced when it comes to the influencing of legal and regulatory procedures. Many businesses and individuals may engage in these vices to make regulatory and legal authorities to “look the other way” (Wells & Hymes, 2012). It is important to understand that public sector corruption impact is defined through two perspectives: supply-side and demand-led corruption. The supply-side corruption covers the individuals, parties, and organizations that hand out bribes or corrupt payments not necessarily under coercion. The demand-side corruption on the other hand covers those that demand and accept bribes or corrupt payments. The two perspectives share a common similarity where both the bribe givers and recipients gain from the corrupt deal. In many instances, the supply-side corruption is usually accelerated in the public sector due to the presence of wealthy organizations and individuals. In many poor countries, wealthy multinational corporations that hail from industrialized countries may easily influence officials. Many of these poor countries may have weak legal systems that may enhance supply-side corruption. In these countries prevalent with the supply-side corruption, have leaders, senior officials, and politicians that are above the law or are immune to the criminal justice system. These loopholes are the major catalysts of the supply-side corruption. The demand-side public sector corruption is notably prevalent in the developed nations and societies (OCSE, 2000). Many of the developed countries have bureaucratic measures that can easily precipitate the demand for bribes by public officials. Those who understand the weaknesses of the system can easily exploit these inefficient bureaucracies with ease. The supply-side corruption has a great impact in many societies. It locks out genuine businesses or deserving individuals from accessing public services, tenders, and utilities. Many multinational corporations that engage in this type of corruption lock out the indigenous firms from competitively participating in their own nation’s economy and commerce. This corruption further increases the cost of engaging in business for the less financially endowed firms. The demand-side corruption on the other hand, may hinder many competent individuals or organizations from engaging with the public sector. The corrupt payment demands in this case may be too exaggerated pushing out genuine businesses and individuals from engaging rightfully in the public sector. The demand-side corruption in most instances is intricate as legal and regulatory systems are well developed. The public officials that understand the workings of the system thus charge exorbitant corruption payments that may create non-conducive environment for business and public service. Bribery and corruption has no boundaries. It is a global problem the difference is the geographical reach and cost associated with these vices. The global nations under the United Nations organization understand the negative implications of corruption hence the ratification of the UN corruption preventive measures. These measures are captured in the articles that provide for participation of societies and prevention of money laundering. The UN understands the critical role played by civil societies and the citizenry in general in keeping corruption in check. It encourages access and creation of anti-corruption bodies that are integral in the fight against corruption. This international organization understands fully the effects of money laundering. It has fostered international regulatory platforms and cooperation in managing this problem. Many regional blocs in different continents have created mechanisms to manage and prevent corruption among their members. The European Union and African Union have distinct platforms for enhancing transparency among their member states (Loughman et al., 2012). The United Kingdom and United States have continuously provided many countries with the legal and regulatory frameworks. The UK bribery act 2010 and the US FCPA act of 1977 have been instrumental in deterring corruption and bribery. The UK Bribery act of 2010 was crafted with the intent of emboldening the fight against corruption within the United Kingdom. It particularly identifies the specific criminal offence of the bribing of foreign public officials by U.K citizens and/or organizations with the intent of obtaining or retaining business. The act further provides strict guidelines to companies on preventing their employees from engaging in corrupt dealings. It also raises the jail term for bribery crimes from by three years from seven years to ten years. Companies under this act also face unlimited fine if identified to have negligently failed to prevent bribery. The United States FCPA act of 1977 covers all US companies, citizens, foreign companies based in US, foreign companies listed on the US stock exchange, and all US permanent residents and citizens anywhere in the world regardless of their employer. It prohibits indirect corrupt payments made via intermediaries or agents. It also finds companies liable if they authorize any form of payment or knew that the agent would undertake payment. The act cites that knowledge on the part of the company includes awareness of “high probability” that corrupt payment or bribe will be extended. The act also stipulates the legal fines and criminal penalties to its violators. Companies may be fined up to US$ 2million or twice the benefit. Individuals on the other hand may face fines amounting up to US$ 250,000 or imprisonment of up to five years. The two acts, the US FCPA act of 1977 and UK bribery act of 2010, have been instrumental in discouraging corruption, which is both demand-led and supply-sided. The two acts touch not only on their citizens, indigenous companies but also foreign company and officials. They also provide strict guidelines to companies that previously enjoyed their way through their corrupt employees. In short, this means corporate failure is punishable under these acts. The acts have also gone a notch higher by outlawing facilitation payments that previously provided loopholes for bribery and corruption in the respective nations (Myint, 2000). In conclusion, bribery and corruption in the public sector is a global endemic. The vices surface in both the developed and less developed nations and societies. The public sector, however, notably is characterized by circumstances that enhance bribery and corruption. These namely are government contracts, government benefits, revenue generation, time and regulatory avoidance, and legal and regulatory procedures. Corruption has also been identified through two perspectives, demand-led and supply-side. The two have adverse effects on societies and provision of public services (Loughman et al., 2012). The US FCPA act of 1977 and UK bribery act of 2010 have also been identified as the legal benchmarks for fighting corruption and bribery. The laws have been effective as they cover a broad spectrum of entities. The two acts touch not only on their citizens, indigenous companies but also foreign company and officials.

Ameresekere, N. S. (2011). UN Convention against Corruption to combat fraud & corruption: A cancerous menace : with mere rhetoric subverts UN Convention. Central Milton Keynes: AuthorHouse. Loughman, B. P., Sibery, R. A., & Ernst & Young (2012). Bribery and corruption: Navigating the global risks. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley. Myint, U. (2000) Corruption: Causes, Consequences and Cures, Asia-Pacific Development Journal,7(2). OCSE (2000). No longer business as usual: Fighting bribery and corruption. Paris: Organisation for economic co-operation and development. Tavits, M. (2005) Causes of Corruption: Testing Competing Hypotheses, Working paper, Nuffield College. Wells, J. T., & Hymes, L. (2012). Bribery and corruption casebook: The view from under the table. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons.

Cite this page

Share with friends using:

Removal Request

Finished papers: 1457

This paper is created by writer with

If you want your paper to be:

Well-researched, fact-checked, and accurate

Original, fresh, based on current data

Eloquently written and immaculately formatted

275 words = 1 page double-spaced

Get your papers done by pros!

Other Pages

Alveolar reports, occupancy rate reports, carbonyl reports, day camp reports, institute reports, large number reports, hiv reports, hobby college essays, reinfection essays, copan essays, rata essays, sibilance essays, tzaddik essays, qaeda essays, illinois essays, demand and supply essays, protecting animals essays, jihad essays, example of movie review on world bank usaid debate midterm paper, white ethnic groups essay examples, essay on pugs and pigs, free essay on ethical and cultural relativism, essay on reply to an article, free essay on steps taken by organization for making changes, amtrak term paper, free personal statement on philosophy of nursing, the effect of exercises on depression research paper examples, race as a historical premise that influenced african american writers literature review examples, example of report on c2 c1 v1 v2, symbolism and pathetic fallacy in the things they carried by tim obrien research paper, curriculum framework essay examples, admission essay on admission, street name essay examples, advantages of studying international politics theoretically research paper examples, example of epistemology and decision choice rationality essay, essay on christopher marlowe quot hero and leader quot, a case study of the development of world disney theme park in nevada literature review sample, free book review on japans imperial army its rise and fall 1853 1945, business organization essay examples, balanced scorecard bsc term paper example, good book review on anthropology, example of essay on colonial america, the formula for calculating radial speed is essay samples.

Password recovery email has been sent to [email protected]

Use your new password to log in

You are not register!

By clicking Register, you agree to our Terms of Service and that you have read our Privacy Policy .

Now you can download documents directly to your device!

Check your email! An email with your password has already been sent to you! Now you can download documents directly to your device.

or Use the QR code to Save this Paper to Your Phone

The sample is NOT original!

Short on a deadline?

Don't waste time. Get help with 11% off using code - GETWOWED

No, thanks! I'm fine with missing my deadline

45,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. Take the first step today

Here’s your new year gift, one app for all your, study abroad needs, start your journey, track your progress, grow with the community and so much more.

Verification Code

An OTP has been sent to your registered mobile no. Please verify

Thanks for your comment !

Our team will review it before it's shown to our readers.

Speech on Corruption

• Updated on  
• Jun 2, 2023

Corruption is a problem that has hampered the growth of our country in not one but many ways. It is also one of the most common English speech topics for students . The idea behind giving this as a topic in a speech is to enlighten students on our country’s problems and how we can resolve them. Here, in this blog, we give you a sample speech on corruption, which will come in handy for you in the future.

This Blog Includes:

Introduction to corruption, examples of corruption, causes of corruption, how to fight corruption .

Must Read: Corruption in India Speech

Speaking Task: Speech on Corruption (5 minutes)

Good morning to one and all present here. It is rightly said that your speech only becomes well if your tongue says what your heart feels. So, here I am to talk about the current and worldwide ongoing issue and enlighten all of you with a speech on Corruption! 

In one aspect or the other, we all have come across the word ‘Corruption.’ According to political ideology’s definition, ‘Corruption is a form of dishonesty or criminal offence undertaken by a person or organization entrusted with a position of authority, to acquire illicit benefit or abuse power for one’s private gain.’ Seems lengthy and confusing, right? Most simply, corruption is dishonest behaviour practised by authorities such as managers or government officials. This is how people with power rule the world, thereby violating certain people’s rights and privileges. 

It is said that time changes everything.  But here it is, this dishonest act and the unsatisfying term haven’t changed for years on end. It is still prevalent. The main reason for corruption in India is the link between bureaucrats, politicians, and criminals.

Gone are the days when bribes were given when things were wrong. Presently, bribes are received to hide the right stuff. May it be a minor issue or a life-threatening one, a younger child or an adult man, a school-going boy to a working person everyone has seen and has fallen prey to corruption. These days, even if a person isn’t qualified enough for a public sector job, he can quickly get it by spending money and giving bribes to higher officials. 

Must Read: Essay on Labour Day

Well, what is a speech on corruption without some examples? So here are some things which you must have experienced at some point in your life. Have you ever applied for your or your child’s admission to a big reputed college? You can observe in a few of those colleges that if you aren’t eligible for admission, then a bribe is the door opener. Sounds pathetic right? But this is the sad truth these days. From getting admission to reputed colleges to being elected with numerous votes, everything unless more minor or more ways is induced with corruption.

But the most significant and worst type of corruption is Political Corruption. In legal terms, Political corruption or Mal Politics uses powers by government officials or their network contacts for illegitimate private gain. This type is the most concerning one as it erodes the fundamental value of the law that governs and regulates society creating a massive mess in the country as a whole.

Now you all might be thinking that this happens only in well-established and sophisticated cities, but that’s not the case. It occurs throughout India. Metropolitan cities, towns, and villages are all part of this evil game, and it is the common man who gets unnecessarily trapped in the dishonest strategies of this game. The heights of corruption have reached such an extent that strict law can also reduce but not abolish this corrupt mindset. 

Any speech on corruption can never be complete without looking at the causes of corruption. We often hear people saying, ‘Everything happens for a reason. This states that Everything happening around us is driven by a strong desire or motivation behind it. In the same way, corruption also has some hidden causes behind it. Enlisted are the causes of corruption:

• Greed of money
• Lack of values and ethics
• Lack of education
• High level of bureaucracy and inefficient administrative structure 
• Political instability
• Gender Inequality 

Now, when we have raked up this sensitive topic in my speech on corruption, I must bring to your notice certain measures to reduce this problem. “Every problem has a solution……But it depends whether you want to solve it or not”. It depends on us if we have to stand against this evil act or in support of it. People usually stay silent in such situations, but one must remember that mere silence leads to acceptance. We must unite together and try to reduce corruption. Enlisted are the various ways in which we can reduce corruption to a greater extent.

• People should start reporting cases of corruption without any delay.
• All the government, non-government, public, private, and educational should unite together and stand against corruption.
• The media and advertising sector should educate people against corruption regularly.
• We should provide students with additional courses to build better citizens for tomorrow.

To conclude, corruption is making life worse for the commoner. But, he is the only one who can raise his voice and bring change. We should start from ourselves and change our thinking of ‘Make a Change to that of ‘Be a change. So, let’s come together and stand in favour of the commoner and not corruption. Let’s decide to be loyal and valuable citizens of our country.

Explore: Speech Writing

So, this was our blog on a speech on corruption. We hope this blog helped you to understand corruption and ways to prevent it. For more educational and interesting content, visit us at Leverage Edu . Follow us on Facebook , Instagram and LinkedIn .  

Team Leverage Edu

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Contact no. *

14 comments

It’s really great.

Really very helpful and motivating and I understood this concept very clearly and I can now tell a speech anywhere on this topic ….thank you so much…

Happy to help, Jack!

Very nice work am really motivated to write myself.

Thank you for reading. You can also read: Speech on Indian Culture Importance of Friendship Speech Speech on Exam Stress

Am so happy for your assistance

Hello, We are glad to know that our blogs are able to help you out with your assignments, tasks and other activities. We would be highly obliged if you would have a look on some of our top searches: 1. https://leverageedu.com/blog/speech-writing/ 2. https://leverageedu.com/blog/asl-topics/ 3. https://leverageedu.com/blog/english-speech-topics/ 4. https://leverageedu.com/blog/generation-gap-speech/

it was a very very helpful speech it had all the things needed and made it look powerful and strong thank u so much

We are happy that you found the Speech on Corruption helpful. Here’s a list of other speeches that might help you!

https://leverageedu.com/blog/generation-gap-speech/ https://leverageedu.com/blog/speech-on-child-labour/ https://leverageedu.com/blog/women-empowerment-speech/ https://leverageedu.com/blog/speech-on-save-water/ https://leverageedu.com/blog/speech-on-right-to-education/

Thank you sir/madam for helping me with this speech.😀

Thank you! If you want to get regular updates then please sign up for our weekly newsletter!

This is amazing, it helped me for our school’s speech Thank you so much for this!!

Hi, Thanks for your valuable feedback!

It was really helpful thanks a lot

Leaving already?

8 Universities with higher ROI than IITs and IIMs

Grab this one-time opportunity to download this ebook

Connect With Us

45,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. take the first step today..

Resend OTP in

Need help with?

Study abroad.

UK, Canada, US & More

IELTS, GRE, GMAT & More

Scholarship, Loans & Forex

Country Preference

New Zealand

Which English test are you planning to take?

Which academic test are you planning to take.

Not Sure yet

When are you planning to take the exam?

Already booked my exam slot

Within 2 Months

Want to learn about the test

Which Degree do you wish to pursue?

When do you want to start studying abroad.

September 2024

January 2025

What is your budget to study abroad?

How would you describe this article ?

Please rate this article

We would like to hear more.

Cookies on GOV.UK

We use some essential cookies to make this website work.

We’d like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services.

You have accepted additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

You have rejected additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

• Government efficiency, transparency and accountability

Against Corruption: a collection of essays

Leading politicians, activists, journalists and academics begin a global debate about how we can fight back against corruption.

Corruption is the cancer at the heart of many of the world’s problems. It destroys jobs and holds back growth. It fuels instability and terrorism. It traps the poorest in poverty. It even corrodes trust in the sports we love.

In this collection of essays leading politicians, activists, journalists and academics begin a global debate about how we can fight back.

The opinions expressed in these essays are those of the authors, not HM Government. The authors are responsible for their accuracy and lawfulness. While every effort has been made to ensure that the essays are factually accurate and legally compliant, HM Government does not assume any liability in this regard. HM Government has used its best endeavours to ensure that the URLs for external websites referred to in this book are correct and active at the time of going to press. However, HM Government has no responsibility for the websites and can make no guarantee that a site will remain live or that the content is or will remain appropriate.

Related content

Is this page useful.

• Yes this page is useful
• No this page is not useful

Help us improve GOV.UK

Don’t include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details.

To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. Please fill in this survey (opens in a new tab) .

Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security Argumentative Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Corruption is one of the biggest menaces that have faced the current world. It is vice that has robed many if not all nations a lion share of the resources that would otherwise been placed in capital projects. Across the globe political corruption has manifested in the manner that public officers have used their de jure powers for illegitimate benefits.

The political officers who are charged with the core obligation of discharging their mandate with the cardinal objective of protecting the interest of the public have gone astray and turned a threat to the welfare of their employers, the citizens who pay taxes hoping better delivery of public goods.

“Corruption manifests itself in varied forms that range from bribery, nepotism, misappropriation of resources, graft and patronage,” Ades,A & Di Tella, R. (1995). This kind of practices has resulted in the loss of public confidence on their own government .During electioneering period political candidates have promised haven to the electorate on their desire to relentlessly fight the vice raising the public morale to vote in favor of such candidates.

These expectations abort immediately after the winners take over governance and begin to slow down their promises. Many governments have put in place institutions that are geared towards spearheading the war against graft. The anti graft bodies have ended up utilizing public resources without proper accountability as to the output from execution of their mandate.

Globalization has had a great impact on corruption .With globalization the ways in which corruption is practiced has been transformed to take into consideration the technological advancement. The improved communication in the mobile telephony for example has enhanced coordination between various corrupt officials and made it possible for faster corrupt practices. Globalization has enhanced transnational activities e.g. human trafficking, drug trafficking and terrorism.

The war on corrupt practices has also been complicated with better new ideas and software that conceals evidence necessary for indictment of corrupt officers. However, globalization has also enhanced the fight against corruption by boosting the modes of carrying out investigation and improving the methods of netting criminals e.g. through the use if CCTV surveillances and use of modern equipment in fighting terrorism.

The transnational security threat caused by corruption is fast escalating across the boarders of the nations. Some of the security threats arising from corrupt activities include drug trafficking, international terrorism, kidnapping, international illegal immigration and money laundering. These threats to security has created instability causing fear by investors and other economic agents to withdraw their investments a move that has adversely affected the economic prosperity and growth of the economies (Chinhamo, O. & Shumba, G. 2007).

It is the misuse of the legitimate authority that has hugely fueled these activities that results in the global threat and security gap. The custom officers who are responsible for guarding the territorial boarders against smuggling of dangerous products have severally abdicated their mandate of protection and continuously used their position for selfish and short term economic benefits.

Taking into account the threat of drug trafficking has led to the fraudulent smuggling of illegal drugs onto the countries boundaries without having followed the legal procedures and practices (Benaissa, H. 1993).

Worst still is that the syndicate that trades in the dangerous drugs is the top government officials and rich business person who are hard to bring into account and have proper legal verdict passed to them. The act has further increased the distributional gap between the rich and the have not. Again the drugs like cocaine, bhang and nicotine among other drugs have negatively robbed the states the strong labour force that could contribute greatly to the nation’s income.

Majority of the drug consumers are the youth who after addiction and drunkenness have been driven into oblivion and thus becoming non productive. Some have thereafter engaged in criminal activities e.g. crimes and theft a situation that has created instability and led to heavy expenditure on the security budget.

Atatas S.H. (1990) argues that International illegal immigration which is also as a result of corruption has caused a threat to security as citizens from other nations aim at extending terrorism in peaceful states. These individuals are characterized by sneaking with dangerous arsenal that can be used to destroy the peaceful coexistence. The immigration officers have thus slept on the job by not becoming strong on the need to be vigilant on international movement thus enhancing criminal activities across the globe.

Human trafficking has also been in the rise in the international scenario. Many individuals have been kidnapped across the boarders and detained. The kidnappers have always demanded exorbitant payment in order to release the victims. This way corruption has been facilitated by the collusion of our security servicemen to drive the world in further security threats.

International terrorism has for a long duration remained a headache in the international situation with many heads of states organizing for international treaties and agreements on the need to corporate to help eradicate the threat of terrorism. Terrorism has destroyed trillions of investments within seconds when missiles are directed towards cities and towns with a bid to have supremacy gains.

The world leader s who are interested in having recognition without any tangible reasons have embarked on this kind of unproductive war to have themselves known. Through the wanton destruction of property the states have lost a great deal of resources that could be used to finance capital projects

Finally, the impact caused by money laundering has threatened countries financial system and caused financial panic amongst the various financial institutions. Income that has sneaked into the financial system without clear roots has made it difficult for the policymakers to come up with policy documents that can help manage the economy in prudent manner. The practice has resulted into serious inflationary impact and financial shock that has caused financial flight.

This move has retarded the growth of the economies and employment has thus been curtailed as a result of the minimum opportunities. What now remains clear is that the transnational crimes that results from corruption are of high gravity and must be given the attention and weight necessary for mitigating their huge impacts.

Accordingly to Ades,A & Di Tella, R. (1995). the US government should build on its international relations with other states and nations around the globe to assist in curtailing the terrorism threat and drug trafficking amongst various crimes. It is in only symbiotically coordinating with other states and international community that may aid easy apprehending of the criminals.

The upheaval that is likely to be encountered is the differing international laws and varied practices and cultures. Any way it would be much easy and cheaper for seeking this cooperation and integration as international unnecessary barriers will be past constraint.

In conclusion the adverse effects of corruption are of great magnitude and efforts have to be put into place to help curb the problem. Corruption must be viewed in a wider perspective and the manners in which it intersects with other transnational threat are indispensable in our discussion. It is therefore in order for every patriotic us citizen to shun this vice and avoid engaging in any act that breach the set laws.

Reference List

Ades,A & Di Tella, R. (1995). Competition and Corruption: Applied Economics Discussion. Oxford: Oxford University press.

Atatas S.H. (1990). Corruption: Its nature, Causes and functions .Aldershot: Alianza

Benaissa, H. (1993). Corruption and the Socio-cultural cotext . Deventer: Kluwer Law and taxation publishers

Chinhamo, O. & Shumba, G. (2007). Institutional working definition of corruption. London: Macmillan Publishers.

• Illegal Immigration, Its Causes, Methods, Effects
• Contemporary Globalization Issues on Hospitality
• Global Economic Crisis and US Security
• UN Summit in New York: Ending Global Poverty
• “Primary Care Management Of Childhood And Adolescent”
• The Government is invading People’s privacy
• Effects of the New Deal on America
• Citizen Participation and Political Process
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2018, May 17). Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security. https://ivypanda.com/essays/concepts-of-corruption-as-threat-of-security/

"Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security." IvyPanda , 17 May 2018, ivypanda.com/essays/concepts-of-corruption-as-threat-of-security/.

IvyPanda . (2018) 'Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security'. 17 May.

IvyPanda . 2018. "Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security." May 17, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/concepts-of-corruption-as-threat-of-security/.

1. IvyPanda . "Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security." May 17, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/concepts-of-corruption-as-threat-of-security/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Concepts of Corruption as Threat of Security." May 17, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/concepts-of-corruption-as-threat-of-security/.

Last updated 09/07/24: Online ordering is currently unavailable due to technical issues. We apologise for any delays responding to customers while we resolve this. For further updates please visit our website: https://www.cambridge.org/news-and-insights/technical-incident

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings .

Login Alert

• > Global Governance and the Emergence of Global Institutions for the 21st Century
• > Corruption as a Destroyer of Prosperity and the Need for International Enforcement

Book contents

• Global Governance and the Emergence of Global Institutions for the 21st Century
• Copyright page
• Acknowledgments
• Part I Background
• Part II Reforming the Central Institutions of the United Nations
• Part III Governance and the Management of Multiple Global Risks
• Part IV Cross-Cutting Issues
• 18 Corruption as a Destroyer of Prosperity and the Need for International Enforcement
• 19 Education for Transformation
• Part V Foundations for a New Global Governance System
• Part VI Conclusions
• Annex Voting Shares in a Reformed General Assembly

18 - Corruption as a Destroyer of Prosperity and the Need for International Enforcement

from Part IV - Cross-Cutting Issues

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 January 2020

This chapter first provides a broad definition of corruption and discusses why it is so toxic to effective governance. We then address how corruption has emerged as a key issue in the development process after being ignored for many decades. We explore the ways in which, without proper vigilance, government and corruption can become intertwined and feed off each other, destroying the foundations of human prosperity and the very purpose of governance. Existing efforts to tackle corruption at the national, regional and global levels are reviewed, and additional ways forward, particularly as regards the role of economic policies in developing the right sorts of incentives and institutions to reduce the incidence of corruption, are presented. Finally, proposals are put forth for the establishment of an International Anticorruption Court (IACC) to greatly strengthen and better implement a range of legal instruments that are already in place, but that have had limited success in checking the growth of multiple forms of corruption across the planet – affecting developing and developed countries alike. The setting up of an IACC is seen as a necessary adjunct to existing tools to check the spread of what many now regard as a global epidemic.

Corruption kills … The money stolen through corruption every year is enough to feed the world’s hungry 80 times over … Corruption denies them their right to food, and, in some cases, their right to life. Footnote 1

The successful prosecution and imprisonment of corrupt leaders would create opportunities for the democratic process to produce successors dedicated to serving their people rather than to enriching themselves. Footnote 2

If the purpose of governance is to execute collective functions in the common interest, its essential foundation is trust in the institutions of government and confidence that the functions will be carried out justly and effectively. Corruption is the antithesis of this, turning institutions against their intended purpose, plundering the resources available, undermining confidence in government and destroying human prosperity. While previously underappreciated for its widespread and insidious effects, corruption has finally emerged as a problem involving enormous social and economic costs – no approach to governance today can avoid addressing it head on.

The pernicious and systemic ramifications of corruption have now been well documented, with corrupt officials often being the worst human rights abusers and even linked to war crimes. Economically speaking, it is estimated that trillions of dollars in bribes are paid globally on an annual basis, with more than 5 percent of global GDP likely being lost to all forms of corruption every year. Footnote 3 Moreover, as has been powerfully argued in recent analyses, the international security consequences of endemic corruption in various states are ignored at our own peril. Footnote 4 As expressed by then US Secretary of State John Kerry, “the quality of governance is no longer just a domestic concern.” Footnote 5

It has also been argued recently that the key to economic prosperity, across societies, is the creation and maintenance of “inclusive” economic and political institutions, rather than those engineered in the service of ruling elites bent on extractive behaviors. Footnote 6 Acemoglu and Robinson argue that it is only through inclusive and fair institutions that conditions for collective prosperity are achieved, as such institutions, among other things, provide the appropriate incentives to reward the innovation and hard work required to drive economic development.

In the first part of this chapter we provide a broad definition of corruption and discuss why it is so toxic to effective governance. We then address how corruption has emerged as a key issue in the development process after being ignored for many decades. We explore the ways that, without proper vigilance, government and corruption can become intertwined and feed off each other, destroying the foundations of human prosperity and the very purpose of governance. We review existing efforts to tackle corruption at the national, regional and global levels, and suggest additional ways forward. Finally, we support proposals for the establishment of an International Anticorruption Court (IACC), to greatly strengthen and better implement a range of legal instruments that are already in place, but that have had limited success in arresting the growth of multiple forms of corruption across the planet – affecting developing and developed countries alike. We consider the setting up of an IACC as a necessary adjunct to existing tools to check the spread of what many now regard as a global epidemic.

Defining Corruption

Corruption is traditionally defined as the abuse of public office for private gain, including bribery, nepotism and misappropriation; extra-legal efforts by individuals or groups to gain influence over the actions of the bureaucracy; the collusion between parties in the public and private sectors for the benefit of the latter; and more generally influencing the shaping of policies and institutions in ways that benefit the contributing private parties at the expense of the broader public welfare. Footnote 7 The benefits are customarily seen as financial, and many people become rich through corruption.

However, the corruption that is eating into the vitals of global society today is more than just the material corruption of bribery, extortion or embezzlement for personal gain. It is any undue preference given to personal or private gain at the expense of the public or collective interest, including the betrayal of a public trust or office in government, but also the manipulation of a corporate responsibility for self-enrichment, the distortion of truth and denial of science to manipulate the public for ideological ends, and even the misuse of a religious responsibility to acquire power and wealth. Corruption is just one expression of the priority given to oneself over others, of egoism over altruism, of personal over collective benefit. Footnote 8 It is often said that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. One of the first effects of corruption in government is to reduce the capacity of a public administration to fight corruption, creating a vicious circle from which a government has difficulty extricating itself. Corruption at the governmental level is now so widespread that it is an obvious area for international governance to set standards and intervene in the common interest.

A related issue is organized crime, which exists largely through collusion with governments. This can take the form of turning a blind eye to criminal behavior, perhaps for kickbacks or other advantages, directing government procurement or other contracts to criminal enterprises in return for a share of inflated contracts, and interfering with the course of justice to the benefit of criminals. There is potential for such corruption at all levels, from the individual police officer who rents a gun to robbers at night, to heads of state who accept large cash donations in return for favors. Where governments are incorruptible and prosecute criminal activity with vigor, organized crime has difficulty gaining a foothold.

Corruption and associated organized crime are not just a marginal issue. The illegal economy from organized crime is now estimated at US$2 trillion per year, roughly equivalent to all the world’s defense budgets. Bribery has been estimated to amount to US$1 trillion, Footnote 9 with the vast majority of bribes going to people in wealthy countries. Ten percent of all public health budgets are lost to corruption. Footnote 10 Much of this money escapes from national control and oversight along with many international financial flows, as another negative dimension of globalization.

The impacts of corruption are not limited to financial losses and diversions or political inefficiency or failures. If leaders are corrupt, others will be inspired to follow the same model. There are many secondary effects of corruption that spread throughout society. For example, the impact of corruption on environmental destruction and mismanagement is often underestimated because, as an illegal activity, it escapes from statistics; yet it is a principal reason for the failure of many efforts at environmental protection and management, whether from traffic in endangered species, illegal logging and fishing, or ignoring or evading environmental regulations. Both the public and private sectors are heavily implicated in this form of corruption, as is organized crime.

Normally it is a government’s responsibility to prohibit, investigate and prosecute corrupt behavior within its borders or for which its nationals are responsible. However, there are frequently cases where the highest levels of government are themselves corrupt, or where corruption has become so widespread that it is seen as a normal and legitimate part of politics and simply a cost of doing business. Footnote 11 In many cases, the police and courts that should be investigating and prosecuting corrupt behavior are themselves caught up in the system. Criminal prosecutions may then simply become an instrument for eliminating political opponents. Guarantees of immunity from prosecution are another tool used by the corrupt for their own protection. In such situations, national sovereignty becomes a shield behind which to hide illegal activity from international scrutiny.

It is not unknown for a government motivated by corrupt intentions to use legislation or judicial interpretation to render legal those practices that in other states or contexts would be considered corrupt and illegal. For example, removing all limits to the amount of money that individuals or corporate enterprises can donate to the campaign funds of politicians essentially amounts to vote-buying, with politicians becoming dependent on and beholden to the highest bidder.

Only international standards of honesty and definitions of corruption with appropriate means of enforcement will make it possible to intervene in the general public interest where a government has opened the door to corrupt behavior at the expense of its own people. To prevent the rot from spreading, and to protect the public who ultimately pay the price for such corruption, global standards and mechanisms for international intervention are essential.

Corruption Within the Development Process

After many years of authorities turning a blind eye, corruption has finally emerged as a central issue in discussions about the effectiveness of development policies. It is now recognized that corruption comes from many sources and undermines the development process in multiple ways. While various remedies have been proposed and are being used in various parts of the world, the results are mixed.

The period since the late 1990s has witnessed a remarkable change in the understanding of what factors matter in creating the conditions for sustainable economic development. The economics profession has come to a new comprehension of the role of such factors as education and skills, institutions, property rights, technology, transparency and accountability. With this broader outlook has come an implicit recognition that promoting inclusive growth requires tackling an expanding set of nontraditional concerns.

One of these concerns is corruption, a subject that has gone from being very much on the sidelines of economic research to becoming a central preoccupation of the development community and of policy-makers in many countries. Experiences and insights accumulated during the postwar period, and reflected in a growing body of academic research, throw light on the causes and consequences of corruption within the development process and on the question of what can be done about it.

Within the development community, the shift in thinking about the role of corruption in development was tentative at first; multilateral organizations remained reluctant to touch on a subject seen as largely political even as they made increasing references to the importance of “good governance” in encouraging successful development. What factors contributed to this shift? One was linked to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the associated collapse in the late 1980s of central planning as a supposedly viable alternative to free markets. As the international community faced the need to assist formerly socialist countries in making a successful transition to democratic forms of governance and market-based economies, it was clear that this would take far more than “getting inflation right” or reducing the budget deficit. Central planning had collapsed not because of inappropriate fiscal and monetary policies but because of widespread institutional failings, including a lethal mix of authoritarianism (with its lack of accountability) and corruption. Overnight, the economics profession was forced to confront a set of issues extending far beyond conventional macroeconomic policy.

Related to the demise of central planning, the end of the Cold War had clear implications for the willingness of the international community to recognize glaring instances of corruption in places where ideological loyalties had earlier led to collective blindness. By the late 1980s, the donor community cut off President Mobutu of (then) Zaire, for instance, no longer willing to quietly reward him for his loyalty to the West during the Cold War.

A second factor was growing frustration with entrenched patterns of poverty in Africa in particular, as well as in other parts of the developing world. The global fight against poverty had begun to produce gains, but these were concentrated largely in China; in Africa, the number of so-called extremely poor people was actually increasing. Footnote 12 During the late 1980s and early 1990s, staff at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) began to look beyond macroeconomic stabilization to issues of structural and institutional reform. Corruption could no longer be ignored.

A third factor had to do with developments in the academic community. Research began to suggest that differences in institutions appeared to explain an important share of the differences in growth between countries. An increasing number of economists began to see corruption as an economic issue, and this led to a better understanding of its economic effects.

An important role was also played by the intensifying pace of globalization beginning in the 1980s. Globalization and its supporting technologies have led to a remarkable increase in transparency as well as to growing public demand for greater openness and scrutiny. The multilateral organizations were not immune to these influences. How could one overlook the hoarding of billions of dollars of ill-gotten wealth in secret bank accounts by the world’s worst autocrats, many of them long-standing clients of these organizations?

Paralleling these developments, and further raising international public awareness of corruption, were the many corruption scandals in the 1990s involving major political figures. In India and Pakistan, incumbent prime ministers were defeated in elections largely because of corruption charges. In South Korea, two presidents were jailed following disclosures of bribery. In Brazil and Venezuela, bribery charges resulted in presidents being impeached and removed from office. In Italy, magistrates sent to jail a not insignificant number of politicians who had ruled the country in the postwar period, exposing the vast web of bribery that had bound together political parties and members of the business community. In Africa, there was less progress in holding leaders to account, but corruption became harder to hide as new communication technologies supported greater openness and transparency.

Globalization also highlighted the importance of efficiency. Countries could not hope to continue to compete in the increasingly complex global market unless they used scarce resources effectively. And rampant corruption detracted from the ability to do this. Meanwhile, business leaders began to speak more forcefully about the need for a level playing field and the costs of doing business in corruption-ridden environments.

In the 1990s, the US government made efforts to keep the issue of corruption alive in its discussions with OECD partners, further raising international awareness. The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 had forbidden American executives and corporations to bribe foreign government officials, introducing stiff penalties, including prison terms, for those doing so. Because other OECD countries did not impose such restrictions – in fact, most continued to allow tax deductions for bribe payments, as a cost of doing business abroad – American companies began to complain that they were losing business to OECD competitors. Academics sifting through the data showed that US business activity abroad declined substantially following passage of the law. These developments gave impetus to US government efforts to persuade other OECD members to ban bribery practices, and in 1997 the OECD adopted the Anti-Bribery Convention, an important legal achievement.

Another factor contributing to this shift in attitude was the work of Transparency International, including the publication, beginning in 1993, of its Corruption Perceptions Index. That corruption existed everywhere was a well-known fact. What Transparency International showed was that some countries had been more successful than others in curtailing it. The organization’s work helped to focus public attention on corruption and legitimize public discourse on the issue, easing the transition of the multilateral organizations into doing the same.

Transparency International was soon assisted in its efforts by the international organizations themselves. In a speech at the IMF–World Bank annual meeting in 1996, then World Bank President James Wolfensohn did not mince words, saying that there was a collective responsibility to deal with “the cancer of corruption.” More importantly, Wolfensohn gave strong backing to efforts by Bank staff to develop a broad range of governance indicators, including indicators specifically capturing the extent of corruption. This made it possible for the Bank, through the use of quantified indicators and data, to focus attention on issues of governance and corruption while not appearing to interfere in the political affairs of its member countries.

Poor Government and Corruption: Intimate Bedfellows?

What are the sources of corruption, and what factors have nourished it and turned it into such a powerful impediment to sustainable economic development? Economists seem to agree that one important source of corruption stems from the distributional attributes of the state.

For better or for worse, the role of the state in the economy has greatly expanded over the past century. In 1913, the world’s 13 largest economies had public expenditure averaging around 12 percent of GDP. By 1990, this ratio had risen to 43 percent, and in some of these countries to well over 50 percent. Many other countries saw similar increases. Associated with this growth was a proliferation of benefits under state control and also of the ways in which the state imposes costs on society. A larger state need not be associated with higher levels of corruption – the Nordic countries illustrate this. The benefits range from improved infrastructure, public education, health and welfare, to environmental protection and reining in the monopolistic tendencies of corporations. It is not the size of government itself that is the problem. But the larger the number of interactions between officials and private citizens and the weaker the ethical framework determining socially acceptable behavior, the more opportunities there are for citizens to pay illegally for benefits to which they are not entitled or to avoid costs or obligations for which they are responsible.

From the cradle to the grave, the typical citizen has to enter into transactions with government offices or bureaucrats for countless reasons – to obtain a birth certificate, get a passport, pay taxes, open a new business, drive a car, register property, engage in foreign trade. Indeed, governing often translates into issuing licenses and permits to individuals and businesses complying with regulations in myriad areas. The World Bank’s Doing Business report, a useful annual compendium of the burdens of business regulations in 190 countries, paints a sobering picture. Businesses in many parts of the world endure numbing levels of bureaucracy and red tape. In fact, the data in the report eloquently portray the extent to which many governments discourage the development of entrepreneurship in the private sector.

Not surprisingly, the prevalence of corruption is strongly correlated with the incidence of red tape and cumbersome, excessive regulation, which is not generally linked to the public interest. Figure 18.1 compares the rankings of 177 countries on Transparency International’s 2018 Corruption Perceptions Index with their rankings on the Doing Business report’s Ease of Doing Business Index for the same year. The figure speaks for itself: the greater the extent of bureaucracy and red tape, the greater the incidence of corruption – the correlation coefficient is close to 0.80.

Figure 18.1. Rankings of 177 countries on the Corruption Perceptions Index and Ease of Doing Business Index, 2018.

As many surveys have shown, businesses allocate considerable time and resources to dealing with unnecessary bureaucracy. They may often perceive paying bribes as a way to save time and enhance efficiency – and, in many countries, as possibly the only way to get business done without undermining their competitive position relative to those that routinely pay bribes. The more dysfunctional the economic and legal system and the more onerous and ill-conceived the regulations, the greater the incentives to short-circuit the system by paying bribes. The literature is full of examples: the absurdities of central planning in the Soviet Union induced “corruption” on the part of factory managers, to add some flexibility to a system that made a mockery of efficiency in resource allocation. The more irrational the rules, the more likely that participants in the system will find themselves breaking them.

In an insightful analysis in 1964, the Harvard researcher Nathaniel Leff argued that those who viewed corruption as an unremittingly bad thing were implicitly assuming that governments were driven by benevolent motivations and committed to implementing policies that advanced the cause of economic development. In reality, Leff thought, policies in many countries were geared largely to advancing the interests of the ruling elite. Leff and his Harvard colleague Joseph Nye both suggested that corruption was partly a response to market distortions, red tape, excessive and unreasonable regulation and bad policies, but that these were themselves affected by the prevailing levels of corruption – in a symbiotic two-way form of causality that turned corruption into an intractable social and economic problem. Footnote 13

Features of government organization and policy may (wittingly or unwittingly) create incentives for corrupt behavior in numerous ways. The tax system is often a source of corruption, particularly where tax laws are unclear or otherwise difficult to understand. This lack of clarity presumably gives tax inspectors and auditors considerable leeway in interpretation, allowing unwholesome “compromises” with taxpayers. The provision of goods and services at below-market prices also creates fertile ground for corruption. It invariably gives rise to some form of rationing mechanism to manage excess demand, requiring the exercise of discretion by government officials. At a meeting at the Central Bank of Russia in May 1992, IMF staff were shown a several-page list of the exchange rates that applied for importing items, from medications and baby carriages to luxury cars. Bureaucrats had managed to come up with criteria for establishing dozens of different prices for foreign exchange. Needless to say, the list allowed considerable latitude for discretion.

A similar regime existed for export quotas, allowing those who obtained an export license to benefit from the huge gap between the domestic and international price. Another legacy of the Soviet Union was a system of directed credits, essentially highly subsidized loans to agriculture and industry. At rates of interest that were absurdly negative in real terms, these credits were in strong demand and, of course, the criteria for allocating them were extremely opaque.

The incentives for bribes provided in these examples are easy to see; the resulting losses in economic efficiency are similarly evident. Directed credits in Russia did not generally end up with farmers. Instead, they ended up with the highest bidder, who then used the proceeds to buy foreign exchange and finance capital flight (while never repaying the credits or doing so only in deeply depreciated rubles). Export quotas resulted in massive losses for the Russian budget, at a time when the country was going through a severe economic contraction and there were therefore enormous pressures for increased social spending. Susan Rose-Ackerman, one of the leading experts on corruption, refers to the kinds of bribes in these examples as those that clear the market or that equate supply and demand.

Some bribes are offered as incentive payments for bureaucrats. These can take a variety of forms. One is “speed money,” ubiquitous in many parts of the world and typically used to “facilitate” some transaction or to jump the queue. Some economists have argued that this kind of bribery could improve efficiency, since it provides incentives to work more quickly and allows those who value their time highly to move faster. Gunnar Myrdal, writing in 1968, pointed out that, over time, incentives could work the other way: bureaucrats may deliberately slow things down or, worse, find imaginary obstacles or create new ones in order to attract facilitation fees. So, in the end, “speed money” is paid not to speed things up but to avoid artificial delays created by corrupt bureaucrats.

Indeed, some of the regulations enforced in many parts of the world are so devoid of rationality that one can only infer that they were introduced to create opportunities for bribery. Far from being a way to enhance efficiency, paying bribes preserves and strengthens the bribery machinery.

All this is not to say that government regulation is inherently wrong. On the contrary, the World Economic Forum has shown that appropriate environmental and social regulations, fairly enforced, can increase business competitiveness and efficiency in meeting social goals. Where corruption makes it possible to get around the regulations, the result is bad for both business and the public welfare. Footnote 14

Nine Reasons Why Corruption Is a Destroyer of Prosperity

No matter its source, corruption damages the social and institutional fabric of a country in ways that undermine sustainable economic development. A review of some of its consequences helps show why corruption destroys human prosperity.

First, corruption undermines government revenue and therefore limits the ability of the government to invest in productivity-enhancing areas. Where corruption is endemic, people will view paying taxes as a questionable business proposition. There is a delicate tension between the government as tax collector and businesses and individuals as taxpayers. The system works reasonably well when those who pay taxes feel that there is a good chance they will see a future payoff, such as better schools, better infrastructure and a better-trained and healthier workforce. Corruption sabotages this implicit contract.

When corruption is allowed to flourish, taxpayers will feel justified in finding ways to avoid paying taxes or, worse, become bribers themselves. To the extent that corruption undermines revenue, it undermines government efforts to reduce poverty. Money that leaks out of the budget because of corruption will not be available to lighten the burden of vulnerable populations. Of course, corruption also undermines the case of those who argue that foreign aid can be an important element of the fight against global poverty – why should taxpayers in richer countries be asked to support the lavish lifestyles of the kleptocrats in corrupt states?

Second, corruption distorts the decision-making process connected with public investment projects, as the IMF economists Vito Tanzi and Hamid Davoodi demonstrated in a 1997 analysis. Large capital projects provide tempting opportunities for corruption. Governments will often undertake projects of a greater scope or complexity than is warranted by their country’s needs – the world is littered with the skeletons of white elephants, many built with external credits. Where resources are scarce, governments will find it necessary to cut spending elsewhere. Tanzi plausibly argued in 1998 that corruption will also reduce expenditure on health and education, because these are areas where it may be more difficult to collect bribes.

Third, there is solid empirical evidence that the higher the level of corruption in a country, the larger the share of its economic activity that will go underground, beyond the reach of the tax authorities. Not surprisingly, studies have shown that corruption also undermines foreign direct investment, because it acts in ways that are indistinguishable from a tax; other things being equal, investors will always prefer to establish themselves in less corrupt countries. Shang-Jin Wei, in a 2000 analysis of data on direct investment from 14 source countries to 45 host countries, concluded that “an increase in the corruption level from that of Singapore to that of Mexico is equivalent to raising the tax rate by 21–24 percentage points.”

Fourth, corruption discourages private sector development and innovation and encourages various forms of inefficiency. Budding entrepreneurs with bright ideas will be intimidated by the bureaucratic obstacles, financial costs and psychological burdens of starting new business ventures and may opt to take their ideas to some other, less corrupt country or, more likely, desist altogether. Thus, whether corruption is a barrier to entry into the market or a factor in precipitating early departure, it harms economic growth.

A high incidence of corruption will also mean an additional financial burden on businesses, undermining their international competitiveness. Unlike a tax, which is known and predictable and can be built into a company’s cost structure, bribes are unpredictable and will complicate cost control, reduce profits and undermine the efficiency of companies that must pay them to stay in business. In a 1995 analysis using indices of corruption and institutional efficiency, the IMF economist Paulo Mauro showed that corruption lowers investment and thus economic growth.

Fifth, corruption contributes to a misallocation of human resources. To sustain a system of corruption, officials and those who pay them will have to invest time and effort in developing certain skills, nurturing certain relationships and building up a range of supporting institutions and opaque systems, such as secret bank accounts and off-the-books transactions. Surveys of businesses have shown that the greater the incidence of corruption in a country, the greater the share of time that management has to allocate to ensuring compliance with regulations, avoiding penalties and dealing with the bribery system that underpins them – activities that draw attention and resources away from more productive tasks.

Sixth, corruption has disturbing distributional implications. In empirical work done at the IMF in 1998, Gupta, Davoodi and Alonso-Terme showed that corruption, by lowering economic growth, perceptibly pushes up income inequality. It also distorts the tax system, because the wealthy and powerful are able to use their connections to ensure that this system works in their favor. And it leads to inefficient targeting of social programs, many of which will acquire regressive features, with benefits disproportionately allocated to the higher income brackets – as with gasoline subsidies to the car-owning middle classes in India and dozens of other countries.

Seventh, corruption creates uncertainty. There are no enforceable property rights emanating from a transaction involving bribery. A firm that obtains a concession from a bureaucrat as a result of bribery cannot know with certainty how long the benefit will last. The terms of the “contract” may have to be constantly renegotiated to extend the life of the benefit or to prevent its collapse. Indeed, the firm, having flouted the law, may fall prey to extortion from which it may prove difficult to extricate itself. In an uncertain environment with insecure property rights, firms will be less willing to invest and plan for the longer term. A short-term focus to maximize short-term profits will be the optimal strategy, even if this leads to deforestation, say, or to the rapid exhaustion of non-renewable resources.

Very importantly, this uncertainty is partly responsible for a perversion in the incentives that prompt individuals to seek public office. Where corruption is rife, politicians will want to remain in office as long as possible, not because they are even remotely serving the public good but because they will not want to yield to others the pecuniary benefits of high office, and may also wish to continue to enjoy immunity from prosecution. Where long stays in office cease to be an option, a new government, given a relatively short window of opportunity, will want to steal as much as possible as quickly as possible.

Eighth, because corruption is a betrayal of trust, it diminishes the legitimacy of the state and the moral stature of the bureaucracy in the eyes of the population. While efforts will be made to shroud corrupt transactions in secrecy, the details will leak out and will tarnish the reputation of the government. By damaging the government’s credibility, this will limit its ability to become a constructive agent of change in other areas of policy. Corrupt governments will have a more difficult time remaining credible enforcers of contracts and protectors of property rights.

Ninth, bribery and corruption lead to other forms of crime. Because corruption breeds corruption, it tends soon enough to lead to the creation of organized criminal groups that use their financial power to infiltrate legal businesses, to intimidate, and to create protection rackets and a climate of fear and uncertainty. In states with weak institutions, the police may be overwhelmed, reducing the probability that criminals will be caught. This, in turn, encourages more people to become corrupt, further impairing the efficiency of law enforcement – a vicious cycle that will affect the investment climate in noxious ways, further undermining economic growth. In many countries, as corruption gives rise to organized crime, the police and other organs of the state may themselves become criminalized. By then, businesses will not only have to deal with corruption-ridden bureaucracies; they will also be vulnerable to attacks from competitors who will pay the police or tax inspectors to harass and intimidate.

In fact, there is no limit to the extent to which corruption, once unleashed, can undermine the stability of the state and organized society. Tax inspectors will extort businesses; the police will kidnap innocents and demand ransom; the prime minister will demand payoffs to be available for meetings; aid money will disappear into the private offshore bank accounts of senior officials; the head of state will demand that particular taxes be credited directly to a personal account. Investment will come to a standstill, or, worse, capital flight will lead to disinvestment. In countries where corruption becomes intertwined with domestic politics, separate centers of power will emerge to rival the power of the state.

At that point, the chances that the government will be able to do anything to control corruption will disappear and the state will mutate into a kleptocracy, the eighth circle of hell in Dante’s Divine Comedy. Alternatively, the state, to preserve its power, may opt for warfare, engulfing the country in a cycle of violence. And corrupt failed, or failing, states become a security threat for the entire international community – because, as Heineman and Heimann wrote in Foreign Affairs in 2006, “they are incubators of terrorism, the narcotics trade, money laundering, human trafficking, and other global crime – raising issues far beyond corruption itself.” Footnote 15 More recently, Chayes has tracked the regional and international security implications of kleptocracies in such countries as Afghanistan, Egypt and Nigeria, among others, noting the transnational effects of systemic corruption as akin to an “odourless gas” fueling the various identified threats “without attracting much policy attention.” Footnote 16 “When every government function is up for sale to the highest bidder,” she notes, “violations of international as well as domestic law become the norm.” Footnote 17 The sale of Pakistani nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya is just one dramatic example.

Tackling Corruption

As all of these points demonstrate, corruption is a major impediment to effective governance, transparency, economic development and the proper allocation of public funds for public good, as well as the source of a range of very serious transnational security risks. As corruption in governments and the private sector has globalized, so must the efforts to tackle it. An international legal framework for corruption control is essential to deal with its cross-border effects, and fortunately a strong foundation already exists.

New, well-designed international implementation and enforcement tools should give significantly greater effect to existing international conventions in this field, such as the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), with 186 parties (entry into force December 2005), and the 1997 OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, with 43 states parties (entry into force February 1999). In addition to these conventions, there are also a range of regional treaties covering Africa, Europe, and the Americas.

Unlike the OECD convention, the UNCAC creates a global legal framework involving developed and developing nations and covers a broader range of subjects including domestic and foreign corruption, extortion, preventive measures, anti-money-laundering provisions, conflict-of-interest laws and means to recover illicit funds deposited by corrupt officials in offshore banks. As UNCAC only possesses a weak monitoring mechanism, and the implementation of its provisions in effect has been “largely ignored,” Footnote 18 enforcement should be a priority in strengthened international governance. Until such enhanced tools are developed, the effectiveness of the UNCAC as a deterrence tool will very much depend on the establishment of adequate national monitoring mechanisms to assess government compliance. Many countries need technical assistance to develop the capacity to comply with the UNCAC’s provisions. Multinational corporations are both originators of bribery and frequent victims of extortion, and need strong internal controls and sanctions to protect themselves against malfeasance with its resulting damaging revelations and large fines. Additional international legislation may also be required for types of corruption that are insufficiently regulated, and for novel forms of corruption enabled by new technologies.

Others have argued that another workable approach to fighting corruption may be more robust implementation of the anticorruption laws in the 43 states that have signed the OECD’s Anti-Bribery Convention. Governments will need to do better in holding to account companies that continue to bribe foreign officials. They have at times been tempted to shield companies from the need to comply with anticorruption laws, in a misguided attempt to avoid undermining their competitive position in other countries. Trade promotion should not be seen to trump corruption control. Governments continue to be afflicted by double standards, criminalizing bribery at home but often looking the other way when bribery involves foreign officials in non-OECD countries.

Another international dimension that is closely related to corruption is the necessary monitoring of international financial flows, only a small part of which reflect real investment in the economy. Apart from speculation, these flows represent major channels for the profits of international organized crime and money laundering, which might be detected with better regulation and monitoring. There is also the crucial issue of offshore financial havens used for tax evasion, transfer pricing and unethical minimization of tax liabilities. Footnote 19 A surprising number of wealthy countries also have their own tax-free havens (domestic and in overseas territories) allowing secret ownership, front corporations, little or no reporting, and other mechanisms to facilitate accumulating and hiding wealth. Only international legislation to plug such loopholes will allow more transparency and accountability for the world’s wealth.

One other issue requiring international attention is a more ethical approach to the residual liabilities from past corruption. Too many poor and indebted countries have been drained of their resources and wealth for years by corrupt leaders. Footnote 20 When the leaders eventually fall, successor governments are still expected to pay back all the accumulated debt with interest. This is one cause of the continuing net transfer of wealth from poor to rich countries, undermining efforts to reduce poverty by 2030 as called for in the Sustainable Development Goals. On the one hand, countries that make effective efforts to stamp out corruption should be rewarded with debt forgiveness, in the context of a program of coherent economic reforms. On the other hand, much stronger international mechanisms are required to track down and recuperate the ill-gotten gains stashed abroad by corrupt leaders and their families. Footnote 21

General Strategies to Fight Corruption

The best defense against corruption is to avoid it happening to begin with, and to reduce or eliminate those situations in which corruption breeds. Much of this is best accomplished at the national level where the will exists, but much can be done within the framework of international governance to facilitate and reinforce national processes. Beyond increasing the benefits of being honest and the costs of being corrupt, one of the present authors has recently summarized some of the options. Footnote 22

For governments that can still hope to reduce corruption, what are some options for reform? Rose-Ackerman, writing in 2016, recommended a two-pronged strategy aimed at increasing the benefits of being honest and the costs of being corrupt, a sensible combination of reward and punishment as the driving force of reforms. While this is a vast subject, some complementary approaches can be proposed.

Pay civil servants well . Whether civil servants are appropriately compensated or grossly underpaid will clearly affect their motivation and incentives. If public sector wages are too low, employees may find themselves under pressure to supplement their incomes in “unofficial” ways. The IMF economists Caroline Van Rijckeghem and Beatrice Weder’s 2001 empirical work revealed that in a sample of developing countries, lower public sector wages are associated with a higher incidence of corruption – and higher wages with a lower incidence. Footnote 23

Create transparency and openness in government spending . Governments collect taxes, tap capital markets to raise money, receive foreign aid and develop mechanisms to allocate these resources to satisfy a multiplicity of needs. Some do this in ways that are relatively transparent, with a clear budget process with fiscal targets and priorities, clear authorizations and execution, public disclosure of performance, and independent reviews and audits, and try to ensure that resources will be used in the public interest. The more open and transparent the process, the less opportunity it will provide for malfeasance and abuse. The ability of citizens to scrutinize government activities and debate the merits of public policies also makes a difference. Thus, press freedoms and literacy levels will shape the context for reforms in important ways. An active civil society with a culture of participation can also be important in supporting strategies to reduce corruption.

Cut red tape . The strong correlation between the incidence of corruption and the extent of bureaucratic red tape suggests the desirability of eliminating needless regulations while safeguarding the essential regulatory functions of the state necessary for environmental and social protection, health and safety. The sorts of regulations on the books of many countries – requiring certifications and licenses for a plethora of reasons – are sometimes not only extremely burdensome but also no longer relevant. Rose-Ackerman suggests that “the most obvious approach is simply to eliminate laws and programs that breed corruption.”

Replace regressive and distorting subsidies with targeted cash transfers . Mindless subsidies, often benefiting the wealthy and vested interests, are another example of how government policy can distort incentives and create opportunities for corruption. As noted previously, according to a 2015 IMF study, consumer subsidies for energy products amount to some US$5.3 trillion a year, equivalent to about 6.5 percent of global GDP. Footnote 24 These subsidies are very regressively distributed: for gasoline, over 60 percent of benefits accrue to the richest 20 percent of households. Subsidies often lead to smuggling, to shortages and to the emergence of black markets. Leaving aside the issue of the opportunity costs (how many schools could be built with the cost of one year’s energy subsidy?), and the environmental effects associated with artificially low prices, subsidies can often put the government at the center of corruption-generating schemes. It would be much better to replace expensive, regressive subsidies with targeted cash transfers.

Deploy smart technology . Frequent, direct contact between government officials and citizens can open the way for illicit transactions. One way to address this problem is to use readily available technologies to encourage a more arm’s-length relationship between officials and civil society. The use of online platforms has been particularly successful in public procurement, perhaps one of the most fertile sources of corruption. Purchases of goods and services by the state can be sizable, amounting in most countries to somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of GDP. Because the awarding of contracts can involve bureaucratic discretion, and because most countries have long histories of graft, kickbacks and collusion in public procurement, more and more countries have opted for procedures that guarantee adequate openness and competition, a level playing field for suppliers, clear bidding procedures and the like.

Chile has used the latest technologies to create one of the world’s most transparent public procurement systems. ChileCompra, launched in 2003, is an Internet-based public system for purchasing and hiring that serves companies, public organizations and individual citizens. It is by far the largest business-to-business site in the country, involving 850 purchasing organizations. In 2012, users completed 2.1 million purchases totaling US$9.1 billion. The system has earned a worldwide reputation for excellence, transparency and efficiency.

Many other areas of reform can contribute to reducing corruption. A viable legal system with clear laws, independent judges and credible penalties, supported by a tough anticorruption agency and an ombudsperson to investigate requests for bribes, can show that a government takes the issue seriously. In aid programs, donors can do much more to ensure that the funds provided are used properly and achieve the intended results.

More generally, the types of development projects that are encouraged or supported should also be examined critically from an anticorruption perspective. For example, the tax-free zones and similar arrangements that have been established in many countries to attract foreign businesses and create employment require government subsidies and tax breaks with often ephemeral results that are not cost-effective, but local politicians love them because it is so easy to siphon off money from both government and business.

In many of these measures, the underlying philosophy is to remove the opportunity for corruption by changing incentives, closing loopholes and eliminating misconceived rules that encourage corrupt behavior. But an approach that focuses solely on changing the rules and incentives, along with imposing appropriately harsh punishment for violating the rules, is likely to be far more effective if it is also supported by efforts to buttress the moral and ethical foundations of human behavior. One of the underlying causes of corruption is the general decline or vacuum in moral standards and ethical values, and the corollary glorification of greed and excessive wealth across many societies. Efforts, whether in education, local communities or faith-based organizations, to strengthen values such as honesty, trustworthiness and aspirations that reach beyond the purely material, will always be the best defense against corruption. Such stronger ethical standards will provide a new source of strength in the struggle against corruption, complementing the progress made in recent years in improving the legal framework designed to combat bribery and corruption.

An International Anticorruption Court

To support and enhance all of these efforts to fight corruption at lower levels, binding international juridical oversight must also be established. Supranational judicial mechanisms are necessary to prosecute individuals and entities violating established norms on corruption when nations are unable to carry out such prosecutions; such a state of affairs is all too frequently the case when the political establishment and the justice system have been captured by corrupt elites. Such mechanisms could also ensure the effective adjudication of cases of corruption at the international level that escape from or fall between national jurisdictions, or that involve multinational corporations, international criminal syndicates or other transnational actors that may be difficult for any one nation to prosecute. New international mechanisms could take the form of a free-standing international court focusing on anticorruption, a special chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) or of an International Human Rights Tribunal, in combination with a companion technical training and implementation body.

Among the most promising proposals that has emerged to date is for a new, stand-alone International Anticorruption Court that would generally follow the model of the ICC, as currently advocated by US Senior Judge Mark Wolf and others engaged in the Integrity Initiatives International (III). Footnote 25 Judge Wolf notes that federal jurisdiction at the US national level is commonly employed to address state-level corruption, to deploy appropriate expertise, resources and independence to tackle embedded corruption effectively at the more local level. By analogy, to ensure meaningful prosecutions of corrupt national officials around the world, a higher level of oversight and enforcement is required at the international level.

The IACC model proposed by Wolf and colleagues would embrace the complementarity principle of the ICC, only stepping in with investigations and prosecutions when national courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute. Such a court could in particular target “grand corruption,” or the abuse of public office for private gain by a country’s leaders, which often translates directly into entrenched systemic national norms of corruption, and impunity for the same, as those same leaders control the law enforcement and justice apparatus. Footnote 26

A companion technical institute established at the same time as the proposed IACC could moreover have the capacity to provide innovative and unprecedented internationalized (or “hybrid”) ad hoc technical bodies for review and enforcement audits and support of prosecutions at the national level, when appropriate, in addition to general technical training. Such a body could make assessments about whether technical assistance and training would be effective in a given country (and, if so, to whom and when to deliver such training), and could consider possible hybrid prosecutions or “loaning” of highly skilled international staff in service of national prosecutions, according to specific country conditions. An international anticorruption technical institute could build on sound initiatives already begun at the international level, for example, the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC), recently established and initially seated in the United Kingdom, with the goal of facilitating international cooperation and information exchange on the prosecution of grand corruption. Footnote 27 An international institute could also develop and consolidate crucial techniques and cooperative approaches to international asset location and recovery.

In order to set up an IACC (and a supporting technical institute), a transnational network could be established, akin to that which was instrumental in setting up the ICC, to advocate for this new, badly needed international institution. The global public is yet to become sufficiently aware of the comprehensive dimensions of the issue of grand corruption, including the persistent risks of cross-border infection across a range of serious issues of public concern (transnational organized crime, tax evasion, the theft of foreign development aid, sale of weapons of mass destruction, etc.). The III has set out to raise such transnational public awareness, working in particular to establish a global network of youth and young professionals throughout the world who are dedicated to fighting corruption in their home countries and at the global level.

As with proposals for the establishment of other significant international institutions, a concern commonly raised in relation to an IACC is its cost. However, corruption at the international level involves the loss of trillions of dollars every year; this staggering sum would make the funding of a new international court pale in comparison (the ICC, for example, currently costs about US$167 million annually). Moreover, convictions at the IACC would likely normally also entail the restitution of stolen funds or assets, as well as the imposition of fines, which might be used to subsidize the costs of the court. Footnote 28

1 Pillay, Navi. 2013. “The Negative Impact of Corruption on Human Rights,” Opening Statement to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights, March 13. In The Human Rights Case against Corruption . Geneva, Office of the High Commissioner, United Nations Human Rights, 2013, pp. 8–9. www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Development/GoodGovernance/Corruption/HRCaseAgainstCorruption.pdf

2 Wolf, Mark L. 2018. “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court.” Daedalus, the Journal of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences , Vol. 147, No. 3, p. 144.

3 See Pillay, “The Negative Impact of Corruption,” and Wolf, “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court,” pp. 144–146.

4 See, e.g., Chayes, Sarah. 2015. Thieves of State: Why Corruption Threatens Global Security , New York and London, W. W. Norton & Company.

5 Kerry, John. 2016. “Remarks at the World Economic Forum,” US Department of State, January 22. https://2009-2017.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/01/251663.htm .

6 See, e.g., the hypotheses set forth in Acemoglu, Daron and James A. Robinson. 2013. Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty , London, Profile Books.

7 López-Claros, Augusto. 2015. “Removing Impediments to Sustainable Economic Development: The Case of Corruption.” Journal of International Commerce, Economics and Policy Vol. 6, No. 1, 1550002. 35 p. DOI: 10.1142/S1793993315500027.

8 Dahl, Arthur Lyon. 2016. “Corruption, Morality and Religion.” International Environment Forum blog, http://iefworld.org/ddahl16l .

9 Kaufmann, Daniel, Aart Kraay, and Massimo Mastruzzi. 2007. “Governance Matters VI: Governance Indicators for 1996–2006 (July).” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 4280. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=999979 .

10 Anello, Eloy. 2008. A Framework for Good Governance in the Public Pharmaceutical Sector . Working draft for field testing and revision. April. World Health Organization, Geneva. www.who.int/medicines/areas/policy/goodgovernance/GGMFramework2008-04-18.pdf .

11 López-Claros, “Removing Impediments to Sustainable Economic Development.”

12 As noted in Chapter 1 , World Bank data show that between 1990 and 2015 the number of poor people living on less than US$1.90 per day (the poverty line used f or the definition of extreme poverty) fell from about 2 billion to about 740 million. The reduction in extreme poverty, however, was largely accounted for by the very high economic growth rates in China and, to a lesser extent, in India. In sub-Saharan Africa, for instance, the number of extremely poor people actually rose from 276 million in 1990 to 389 million in 2015. Furthermore, using a less austere poverty line of US$3.20 per day, the number of poor is closer to 2 billion people, which is still an unacceptably high number. At this higher poverty line, the number of poor in Africa in 2015 was about 620 million. More disturbingly, on a US$5.50 poverty line, which still leaves people struggling to cope with the challenges of low income, close to 50 percent of the world’s population can be classified as poor.

13 Leff, Nathaniel. 1964. “Economic Development through Bureaucratic Corruption.” American Behavioural Scientist Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 8–14; Nye, Joseph. 1967. “Corruption and Political Development: A Cost-Benefit Analysis.” The American Political Science Review Vol. 61, pp. 417–427.

14 Dahl, Arthur Lyon. 2004. “The Competitive Edge in Environmental Responsibility,” in Michael E. Porter, Klaus Schwab, Xavier Sala-i-Martin, and Augusto López-Claros (eds.), The Global Competitiveness Report 2004–2005 . World Economic Forum. Basingstoke and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 103–110.

15 Heineman, Ben W. and F. Heimann. 2006. “The Long War against Corruption.” Foreign Affairs 85 (May/June), pp. 75–86.

16 Chayes, Thieves of State , p. 184.

17 Footnote Ibid.

18 Wolf, “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court,” p. 148.

19 For a chilling account of this global problem generally, see Shaxson, Nicholas. 2016. Treasure Islands: Tax Havens and the Men Who Stole the World , London, Vintage.

20 See López-Claros, Augusto. 2003. “Drowning in a Sea of Debt,” The New Times , May, Moscow.

21 In this respect, more could be done to boost the effectiveness of initiatives such as the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative (StAR), which is a partnership between the World Bank Group and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Their aim is to “support international efforts to end safe havens for corrupt funds” by bringing together developing country authorities and financial centers “to prevent the laundering of the proceeds of corruption and to facilitate more systematic and timely return of stolen assets.”

22 López-Claros, “Removing Impediments to Sustainable Economic Development.”

23 Van Rijckeghem, Caroline and B. Weder. 1997. “Corruption and the Rate of Temptation: Do Low Wages in the Civil Service Cause Corruption?” IMF Working Paper 97/73. Washington, International Monetary Fund.

24 Coady, David, I. Parry, L. Sears, and B. Shang. 2015. “How Large Are Global Energy Subsidies?” IMF Working Paper WP/155/105. International Monetary Fund. Washington, DC.

25 See Wolf, “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court,” pp. 149–153. Information on the III, including other prominent supporters (such as South African jurist Richard Goldstone), can be found at www.integrityinitiatives.org/ .

26 Wolf, “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court.”

27 Members of the IACCC initiative, as of late 2017, included governmental agencies from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. Interpol and the US Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Homeland Security Investigations were also slated to join.

28 See Wolf, “The World Needs an International Anti-Corruption Court,” p. 150.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle .

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service .

• Corruption as a Destroyer of Prosperity and the Need for International Enforcement
• Augusto Lopez-Claros , Arthur L. Dahl , Maja Groff
• Book: Global Governance and the Emergence of Global Institutions for the 21st Century
• Online publication: 18 January 2020

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox .

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive .