Summary:
In an environment in which growth and employment prospects in many
countries remain subdued and a number of high-profile corruption cases
have fueled moral outrage, and amid a growing consensus that corruption
can seriously undermine a country’s ability to deliver inclusive
economic growth in a number of different areas, addressing corruption
globally—in both developed and developing countries—has become
increasingly urgent. When corruption impairs government functions, it
can adversely affect a number of important determinants of economic
performance, including macrofinancial stability, investment, human
capital accumulation, and total factor productivity. Moreover, when
systemic corruption affects virtually all state functions, distrust of
government can become so pervasive that it can lead to violence, civil
strife, and conflict, with devastating social and economic implications.
This Staff Discussion Note focuses on corruption that arises from the
abuse of public office for private gain, whether it manifests itself
transactionally (for example, a bribe) or through powerful networks
between business and government that effectively result in the
privatization of public policy. While designing and implementing an
anticorruption strategy requires change on many different levels, the
IMF's experience in assisting member countries suggests that several
elements need to be given priority: transparency, rule of law, and
economic reform policies designed to eliminate excessive regulation.
Perhaps most important, however, addressing corruption requires building
effective institutions, with the clear objective of developing a
competent civil service that takes pride in being independent of both
private influence and public interference.
Series:
Staff Discussion Note No. 16/5
Subject(s):
Corruption | Governance |
Inclusive growth | Tax revenues | Government expenditures | Public
investments | Private investments | Human capital | Fund role