Why is corruption - defined here as the misuse of public office for private gain - perceived to be more widespread in some countries than others? Different theories associate cross-national variation in the extent of corruption with particular...

While corruption is an ancient problem, it has had variegated incidence at different times in different places, with varying degrees to damaging consequences. While the tenacity with which it tends to persist in some cases easily leads to despair and...

Corruption, particularly political or "grand corruption", distorts the entire decision-making process connected with public investment projects. The degree of distorsions is higher with weaker auditing institutions. The evidence presented shows that...

The author reviews the overwhelming statistical evidence that countries with high levels of corruption experience poor economic performance. Corruption hinders economic development by reducing domestic investment, discouraging foreign direct...

This paper discusses the relationship between corruption and economic development. It questions the view that, under certain conditions, corruption may enhance efficiency and argues that though corruption may benefit powerful individuals it will...

This volume describes the results of a Regional Conference of Transparency International representatives, held in Bratislava, in April 1999. It is structured into three main parts. Firstly, the Declaration for Municipal Reform, set by the...

The relationship between decentralization of government activities and the extent of rent extraction by private parties is an important element in the recent debate on institutional design. The theoretical literature makes ambiguous predictions about...

Corruption ranks, together with effective democratic representation, as the most important problem facing local governments. The challenge facing local governments is to develop innovative ways of building effective, accountable, and transparent...

The movement toward decentralization is gathering momentum. In this context, the important costs of corruption are being explicitly recognised, as is the urgent need to prevent corruption, raise city revenues, improve service delivery, stimulate...

Building strong institutions is a central challenge of development and is key to controlling corruption. Among public institutions, the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) play a critical role, as they help promote sound financial management and thus...