How Africans Are Dealing With Everyday Corruption
When accessing basic services, more than 1 in 4 people are still being squeezed for bribes.
Corruption was a key driver of the frustrations that have transformed Sudan this year: When President Omar al-Bashir was forced out of office in April by the military after months of civilian-led protests over his authoritarian grip and a tanking economy, he had around $113 million in cash in his house.
Corruption was a key driver of the frustrations that have transformed Sudan this year: When President Omar al-Bashir was forced out of office in April by the military after months of civilian-led protests over his authoritarian grip and a tanking economy, he had around $113 million in cash in his house.
But Sudan is far from alone. According to the latest Global Corruption Barometer for Africa, a massive public opinion survey led by Transparency International and Afrobarometer, Sudan came in second in terms of the percentage of people who thought that corruption increased in the last 12 months—behind the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where 85 percent of people thought it had been getting worse.
Drawn from the experiences of more than 47,000 people across 35 African countries, the report estimates that around 130 million people have paid bribes in the last year when they were seeking access to everyday services like health care, education, requesting a government-issued ID, or a chance at justice.
While corruption is a global problem—as anyone focused on the issue in Russia, Mexico, or Indonesia can confirm—and levels of corruption and perceptions of government efforts to combat it vary widely across Africa, there are some standout trends. “The people who are paying bribes are twice as likely to be the poorest, people who are less advantaged and under extreme pressure,” said Sheila Masinde, Transparency International’s project manager for Kenya.
How Corruption Varies Across 35 African Countries
The Global Corruption Barometer for Africa indicates that more than 1 in 4 citizens reported paying a bribe to access basic services in the past year. Click on a country for more information.
Source: Global Corruption Barometer for Africa, 2019.
Foreign Policy explored how the prevalence of corruption varies across Africa and how it is taking shape across four key points of contact with the state: hospitals, schools, the police, and places where identification documents are issued.
Twitter: @brjodonnell
Twitter: @seekayhickey
More from Foreign Policy
At Long Last, the Foreign Service Gets the Netflix Treatment
Keri Russell gets Drexel furniture but no Senate confirmation hearing.
How Macron Is Blocking EU Strategy on Russia and China
As a strategic consensus emerges in Europe, France is in the way.
What the Bush-Obama China Memos Reveal
Newly declassified documents contain important lessons for U.S. China policy.
Russia’s Boom Business Goes Bust
Moscow’s arms exports have fallen to levels not seen since the Soviet Union’s collapse.
Sign up for World Brief
FP’s flagship evening newsletter guiding you through the most important world stories of the day. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.
