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Rethinking anti-corruption efforts in international development

Author

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  • Stijn Kuipers
Abstract
Purpose - Corruption is commonly seen as a primary impediment to economic development, and its eradication has therefore featured high on development agendas. Most anti-corruption efforts in international development however fail. This paper aims to review recent attempts to unpack the “black box” of corruption to better understand its functioning in developing countries and find ways to combat corruption effectively. Design/methodology/approach - The study has been undertaken through a comparative literature and case analysis of some of the primary findings within the field of anti-corruption in international development of the past decade. Findings - The research finds that the black-and-white conceptualisation of corruption as an impediment to economic development, which is dominant in development circles, commonly fails to understand corruption as an alternative form of problem-solving in specific institutional settings. This has both hindered anti-corruption efforts and given unwarranted primacy to anti-corruption efforts in international development, to the loss of other priorities. Practical implications - Policy-makers need to accept that there are no “magic bullets” against corruption and work in a much more contextual manner, while accepting the fact that corruption might not be the primary impediment to economic growth in their country. Originality/value - The paper strengthens recent calls for a more contextualized approach to combat corruption, which have been given insufficient attention in policy design and most of the literature on corruption, providing a novel starting point for “functional”, politically-aware anti-corruption and development efforts.

Suggested Citation

  • Stijn Kuipers, 2021. "Rethinking anti-corruption efforts in international development," Journal of Financial Crime, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 29(4), pages 1370-1381, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:jfcpps:jfc-08-2021-0176
    DOI: 10.1108/JFC-08-2021-0176
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Krueger, Anne O, 1990. "Government Failures in Development," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 4(3), pages 9-23, Summer.
    2. Benjamin A. Olken & Rohini Pande, 2012. "Corruption in Developing Countries," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 4(1), pages 479-509, July.
    3. Sequeira, Sandra & Djankov, Simeon, 2010. "An Empirical Study of Corruption in Ports," MPRA Paper 21791, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Mo, Pak Hung, 2001. "Corruption and Economic Growth," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 66-79, March.
    5. GRANT W. Walton, 2013. "Is All Corruption Dysfunctional? Perceptions Of Corruption And Its Consequences In Papua New Guinea," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 33(3), pages 175-190, August.
    6. Mushtaq H. Khan, 2006. "Determinants of Corruption in Developing Countries: The Limits of Conventional Economic Analysis," Chapters, in: Susan Rose-Ackerman (ed.), International Handbook on the Economics of Corruption, chapter 8, Edward Elgar Publishing.
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    9. Ugur, Mehmet & Dasgupta, Nandini, 2011. "Corruption and economic growth: A meta-analysis of the evidence on low-income countries and beyond," MPRA Paper 31226, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 31 May 2011.
    10. Lui, Francis T, 1985. "An Equilibrium Queuing Model of Bribery," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 93(4), pages 760-781, August.
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    12. Paolo Mauro, 1995. "Corruption and Growth," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(3), pages 681-712.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Good governance; Principal-agent; Anti-corruption; International development; Collective-action; Thinking politically; Principal-agent problem; Collective-action problem; Functionalism;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D73 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Bureaucracy; Administrative Processes in Public Organizations; Corruption
    • O2 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy
    • P16 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State
    • P48 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Legal Institutions; Property Rights; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Regional Studies
    • Z18 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Public Policy

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