Cambodia is one of many developing countries with high corruption.

Corruption is one of the biggest problems today in developing nations. It takes many forms – a policeman demanding payment for an imaginary traffic violation, an added cost to a medical bill, a bribe that must be paid to complete government paperwork. Further up the line, corrupt, high-ranking government officials sometimes take large cuts of money from public service projects, such as roads, for their own use. Corruption exists in all countries, but it is most prevalent in poor countries with weak governments. It also affects the poor much more than others – even a small bribe can drastically affect a poor family’s income. Poor people, because of their lack of financial assets, are also easier to take advantage of. In Cambodia, for example, low-income families spent 2.3% of their income on bribes. Richer families spent only 0.9%. Because of the problems corruption causes for the poor, anti-corruption measures are some of the most important ways to combat poverty.

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There are two main types of corruption that exist in poor nations: small-scale ‘petty corruption’ and larger-scale ‘grand corruption.’

Petty corruption most directly affects impoverished families. Petty corruption occurs when local, low-ranking government workers – policeman, judges, and other officials – charge money for services that should be free, add to the price services that should cost very little, or accept bribes to perform small favors. Consider, for example, a small business – a roadside stand. Because the business might not be registered with the government, it is vulnerable to extortion from the police, who might threaten to shut the operation down unless the owner pays a bribe. Petty corruption directly increases the cost of living for poor individuals, who cannot afford to pay the extra prices or bribes, but are too disempowered to do anything else. This constant drain on income leads to a deeper level of poverty.

Microenterprises and small businesses also suffer from petty corruption. In many countries, especially Eastern European nations such as Bosnia, Slovakia, and Poland, a large portion of a small businesses’ income goes toward paying bribes to officials and policemen in order to stay in business. These small businesses pay almost twice the amount in bribes that larger businesses pay.

Microenterprises such as this small store are often affected heavily by petty corruption.

Grand corruption occurs when higher-ranking officials in the government take large amounts of money from government-funded programs. Many times, these programs provide services to the poor, such as health centers and food programs, and when corrupt government officials siphon money from these programs, both the quality and scale of the program and the poor suffer. In South Africa, for example, the social security program— widely regarded as the most important anti-poverty program in the country—loses about 10% of its total budget to corrupt activities.

Large-scale corruption in the highest levels of the government can severely hamper economic growth, and increases government inefficiency. This further reduces economic progress because it draws away foreign investors who would otherwise contribute to the economy and thereby help impoverished people through job creation and other actions.

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Fighting corruption can be a very complex task. If many high-ranking government officials are already corrupt, it becomes difficult to conduct investigations into their activities, and the truth can remain hidden. In the case of petty corruption, preventing corruption becomes even more difficult. In some cases, bribes have become the only means to get important things accomplished, and stopping this requires an overhaul of the entire system. Also, many officials, such as policemen, who accept or take bribes are not that bad – sometimes their incomes are so small that corruption is necessary to support their families.

Despite these difficulties, both the World Bank and the United Nations Global Program against Corruption (GPAC) work to implement anti-corruption strategies in countries around the world.

• The World Bank: The World Bank’s anti-corruption efforts focus on helping the countries in which it works fight corruption, as well as monitoring the use of the billions of dollars it gives each year –with so much money being distributed, problems with corruption are likely to occur along the way. The World Bank has a special investigative unit – the Department of Institutional Integrity — that investigates fraud and corruption both within the bank and outside it. The work of this unit has resulted in 25 convictions in various countries, a big step in curbing corruption. The World Bank also supports more transparency in governments, so that the flow of money among officials is easier to see and monitor.

  The World Bank fights corruption through its Department of Institutional Integrity.

  It also attempts to remake corrupt legal systems in the countries it works in, and helps draft anti-corruption legislation, to ensure that corrupt officials are brought to trial and punished.



• GPAC: The Global Program against Corruption, part of the larger United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, employs anti-corruption strategies similar to those of the World Bank. Indeed, many of GPAC’s country programs cooperate closely with the World Bank as well as with a well-known anti-corruption organization called Transparency International. GPAC has conducted anti-corruption campaigns in 12 countries since 1999. In 2003, it modified its strategies to reflect the new United Nations Convention against Corruption, the primary U.N. anti-corruption legislation. GPAC focuses on strengthening he integrity of courts and disseminating technical information to local officials who are combating corruption.

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Corruption and Poverty: A Review of Recent Literature (PDF)

Dugger, Celia. "Where a Cuddle With Your Baby Requires a Bribe." The New York Times. 30 August 2005: national ed.

How the World Bank Fights Poverty

The Link Between Corruption and Poverty : Lessons from Kenya Case Studies (PDF)

Transparency.org: Globalisation, Corruption, and Poverty Reduction

UNODC: Convention Against Corruption

UNODC: Corruption

UNODC: GPAC

UNODC: Romania

World Bank: Competetive Private Sector

World Bank: Corruption, Poverty, and Inequality

World Bank: Institutional Restraints on Power

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