This document provides an introduction to corruption and anti-corruption. It defines corruption as the misuse of entrusted power for private gain. It describes the objectives of the session as introducing corruption, describing types and forms of corruption, and identifying causes from political, economic, institutional and social perspectives. It then discusses interpretations of corruption, common types like grand and bureaucratic corruption, causes like political and economic factors, and goals of anti-corruption efforts.

1. Introduction to Corruption/Anti-Corruption
Session 1

2. Session Objectives
By the end of this session participants will be able to:
Introduce the notion of corruption in different contexts;
Describe the types of corruption as well as different forms
in which corruption manifests itself;
Describe the different approaches to identify causes of
corruption from a political, economic, institutional and social
angle.

3. What is corruption?

4. Interpretations of corruption
The subject has been approached from different angles:
 Moral and ethical discussions on corrupt behaviours.
 A strict legal definition anchored on criminalised activities.
 A “government deficit” definition:
 institutions & systems’ vulnerability to corruption.
 A broader concept: Corruption is the “misuse of entrusted
power for private gain.”

5. Factors/determinants of corruption
Corruption is a continuously evolving phenomenon affected by
various factors/determinants:
Political
environment
Economic and
structural policies
Social and cultural
settings
Institutional and
organisational
structures

6. Common typologies of corruption
 Grand corruption / Political corruption
• Misuse of political power for private gain
– e.g. preservation/strengthening of power, personal
enrichment.
• Large scale corruption at the highest levels of
government, usually at policy formation level.
• Common forms of grand/political corruption:
vote-buying; election-rigging; non-transparent/illegal
political campaign financing; abuse of public property;
biased decision-making for personal interest.

7. Common typologies of corruption
 Bureaucratic corruption / Petty corruption
• In public administration or at the implementation end of the
policies; e.g. bribes and speed money.
• Political & Bureaucratic corruption can go hand-in-hand (no
clear separation between elected politicians and bureaucratic
officials).
• Everyday forms of corruption – citizens/businesses/officials
gain personally, beyond official duty, in the process of
delivering public services of various types.
 Bureaucratic corruption, administrative corruption and petty
corruption = synonyms in anti-corruption literature.

8. Common typologies of corruption
 Systemic/Endemic corruption
• Corruption is an integrated aspect of the major institutions and
processes of the state.
• Corruption can be so endemic that it may be unknown how to
contain it.

9. Causes and symptoms of corruption
Important Questions
 Why is corruption perceived to be more widespread
in some countries than others?
 Within a country, does corruption vary from one
locality to another?
 Within the public sector, are certain government
agencies more corruption-prone?

10. Causes and symptoms of corruption
 Multiple causes
 Causes are
inter-related
and reinforce
one another
 this generates
and perpetuates
corrupt practices
and networks.

11. Symptom or a cause?
Corruption is as much a symptom as a cause of
development challenges.
Symptom
Cause
Challenges to Human
Development
Corruption

12. Corruption fosters an anti-democratic environment

13. Most common forms of corruption (1)

14.  Corruption by a single individual – e.g. embezzlement
 Corruption usually involves 2 parties (giver & taker):
• Corrupter – Corrupted
Anti-corruption strategy
should address both sides.
Most common forms of corruption (2)

15. What is Anti-corruption?
 Anti-corruption is a response to curb or minimize corruption
activities or risks.
 People talk about anti-corruption to refer to activities that range
from policy decisions, investigation, prevention, awareness raising.
 Anti-corruption goes beyond responding to the normative anti-
corruption framework to cover systematic, comprehensive and
multi-disciplinary measures aimed to tackle corruption, including
both preventive and enforcement measures.
 Anti-Corruption is therefore multi-faceted, denoting ethical values,
law enforcement and crime while at the same time it’s an
underlying development issues through leakages of public
resources.

16. Key messages
 There is no exhaustive or universal definition of corruption;
 Corruption is a phenomenon that has evolved with human
history and is continuously influenced by political, economic,
social or cultural contexts;
 There are different types of corruption (non-exhaustive):
political corruption, bureaucratic corruption, grand corruption, petty
corruption, systematic corruption, etc.
 There are multiple causes and symptoms of corruption.
A solid analysis is needed to determine the immediate,
underlying and root causes;
 There are different manifestations and forms of corruption
(non-exhaustive).