NCJ Number
201048
Journal
Forum on Crime and Society Volume: 2 Issue: 1 Dated: December 2002 Pages: 45-56
Date Published
December 2002
Length
12 pages
Annotation
Through an examination of the practices in sub-Sahara Africa, this article explores corruption facing the aid industry and examines how to best police these corrupt practices.
Abstract
The aid industry faces a high possibility for corrupt practices that infringe on its ability to provide aid to those who truly need it. Corruption within the aid industry generally takes one of three forms: (1) misuse of funds by the donor; (2) misuse of funds by the recipient; and (3) misuse of funds through a collusion of the donor and recipient. Aid agencies can help combat corruption in foreign countries by supporting good governmental practices, which involve changing incentive structures to ensure officials are well compensated for their work, enhancing public access to information, and spurring competition for markets and customers. The author argues that if political corruption is not fully addressed, many of the strategies to reduce corruption will be short-lived and ineffective. However, currently, the aid industry is dealing with corruption by supporting initiatives of a largely technical nature, which does not address the corruption that is deeply entrenched within political systems. In conclusion, the author argues that the aid agencies actually accept quite a high degree of corruption as part of the business, which results in the industry turning a blind eye to corrupt practices rather than helping to inform anti-corruption policies and procedures. References