Editing Political corruption (section)

==Consequences==
===Consequences on politics, administration, and institutions===
[[File:Countries implicated in the Panama Papers.svg|thumb|upright 1.2|Countries with politicians, public officials or close associates implicated in the [[Panama Papers]] leak on April 15, 2016]]
Political corruption undermines democracy and [[good governance]] by flouting or even subverting formal processes. Corruption in elections and in the legislature reduces [[accountability]] and distorts representation in policymaking; corruption in the judiciary compromises the [[rule of law]]; and corruption in [[public administration]] results in the inefficient provision of services.  For republics, it violates a basic principle of [[republicanism]] regarding the centrality of civic virtue.<ref name="www-wds.worldbank"/>
More generally, corruption erodes the institutional capacity of government if procedures are disregarded, resources are siphoned off, and public offices are bought and sold. Corruption undermines the [[Legitimacy (political)|legitimacy of government]] and democratic values such as [[Political efficacy|political trust]]. Recent evidence suggests that variation in the levels of corruption amongst high-income democracies can vary significantly depending on the level of accountability of decision-makers.<ref name="www-wds.worldbank">{{cite web |last=Hamilton |first= Alexander |year=2013 |title= Small is beautiful, at least in high-income democracies: the distribution of policy-making responsibility, electoral accountability, and incentives for rent extraction  |url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2013/01/07/000158349_20130107132037/Rendered/PDF/wps6305.pdf |publisher= World Bank}}</ref>

Evidence from [[fragile state]]s shows that corruption and bribery can adversely impact trust in institutions.<ref name="bath.ac.uk">Hamilton, A. and Hudson, J. (2014) The Tribes that Bind: Attitudes to the Tribe and Tribal Leader in the Sudan. Bath Economic Research Papers 31/14. [http://www.bath.ac.uk/economics/research/working-papers/2014-papers/31-14.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150206005357/http://www.bath.ac.uk/economics/research/working-papers/2014-papers/31-14.pdf|date=2015-02-06}}</ref><ref name="Hamilton, A 2014">Hamilton, A. and Hudson, J. (2014) Bribery and Identity: Evidence from Sudan. Bath Economic Research Papers 30/14.[http://www.bath.ac.uk/economics/research/working-papers/2014-papers/30-14.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150206005359/http://www.bath.ac.uk/economics/research/working-papers/2014-papers/30-14.pdf|date=2015-02-06}}</ref> Corruption can also impact government's provision of goods and services. It increases the costs of goods and services which arise from efficiency loss. In the absence of corruption, governmental projects might be cost-effective at their true costs; however, once corruption costs are included projects may not be cost-effective so they are not executed distorting the provision of goods and services.<ref name=":0" />

===Consequences on economy===
In the [[private sector]], corruption increases the cost of business through the price of illicit payments themselves, the management cost of negotiating with officials and the risk of breached agreements or detection. Although some claim corruption reduces costs by cutting [[bureaucracy]], the availability of bribes can also induce officials to contrive new rules and delays. Openly removing costly and lengthy regulations are better than covertly allowing them to be bypassed by using bribes. Where corruption inflates the cost of business, it also distorts the field of inquiry and action, shielding firms with connections from competition and thereby sustaining inefficient firms.<ref>Luis Flores Ballesteros, [http://54pesos.org/2008/11/15/corruption-and-development-does-the-%E2%80%9Crule-of-law%E2%80%9D-factor-weigh-more-than-we-think "Corruption and development. Does the "rule of law" factor weigh more than we think?"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102095104/http://54pesos.org/2008/11/15/corruption-and-development-does-the-%E2%80%9Crule-of-law%E2%80%9D-factor-weigh-more-than-we-think |date=2016-01-02 }} 54 Pesos (November 15, 2008). Retrieved April 12, 2011</ref>

Corruption may have a direct impact on the firm's effective marginal tax rate. Bribing tax officials can reduce tax payments of the firm if the marginal bribe rate is below the official marginal tax rate.<ref name=":0" /> However, in Uganda, bribes have a higher negative impact on firms' activity than taxation. Indeed, a one percentage point increase in bribes reduces firm's annual growth by three percentage points, while an increase in 1 percentage point on taxes reduces firm's growth by one percentage point.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fisman|first1=Raymond|last2=Svensson|first2=Jakob|date=2007|title=Are corruption and taxation really harmful to growth? Firm level evidence|journal=Journal of Development Economics|volume=83|issue=1|pages=63–75|doi=10.1016/j.jdeveco.2005.09.009|citeseerx=10.1.1.18.32|s2cid=16952584}}</ref>

Corruption also generates economic distortion in the [[public sector]] by diverting public investment into capital projects where bribes and [[Kickback (bribery)|kickbacks]] are more plentiful. Officials may increase the technical complexity of public sector projects to conceal or pave the way for such dealings, thus further distorting investment.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uneca.org/aec/documents/Mina%20Baliamoune-Lutz_%20Leonce%20Ndikumana.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309123826/http://www.uneca.org/aec/documents/Mina%20Baliamoune-Lutz_%20Leonce%20Ndikumana.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-03-09 |title=Corruption and growth in African countries: Exploring the investment channel, lead author Mina Baliamoune-Lutz, Department of Economics |publisher=University of North Florida |page=1,2 |access-date=2012-06-07 }}</ref> Corruption also lowers compliance with construction, environmental, or other regulations, reduces the quality of government services and infrastructure, and increases budgetary pressures on government. Economists argue that one of the factors behind the differing [[economic development]] in [[Africa]] and [[Asia]] is that in Africa, corruption has primarily taken the form of [[rent seeking|rent extraction]] with the resulting [[financial capital]] moved overseas rather than invested at home (hence the stereotypical, but often accurate, image of African dictators having [[Swiss bank|Swiss bank accounts]]). In [[Nigeria]], for example, more than $400 billion was stolen from the treasury by Nigeria's leaders between 1960 and 1999.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/nigerias-corruption-busters.html |title=Nigeria's corruption busters |publisher=Unodc.org |access-date=2009-12-05}}</ref>

[[University of Massachusetts Amherst]] researchers estimated that from 1970 to 1996, [[capital flight]] from 30 [[Sub-Saharan]] countries totaled $187bn, exceeding those nations' external debts.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/Economy/200503140015 |title=When the money goes west |magazine=New Statesman |date=2005-03-14 |access-date=2009-11-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706191351/http://www.newstatesman.com/Economy/200503140015 |archive-date=July 6, 2008 }}</ref> (The results, expressed in retarded or suppressed development, have been modeled in theory by economist [[Mancur Olson]].) In the case of Africa, one of the factors for this behavior was political instability and the fact that new governments often confiscated previous government's corruptly obtained assets. This encouraged officials to stash their wealth abroad, out of reach of any future [[Nationalization|expropriation]]. In contrast, Asian administrations such as [[Suharto]]'s [[Orde Baru|New Order]] often took a cut on business transactions or provided conditions for development, through infrastructure investment, law and order, etc.

===Environmental and social effects===
{{Further|Human impact on the environment}}
[[File:Corrupt-Legislation-Vedder-Highsmith-detail-1.jpeg|thumb|upright=1.35|Detail from ''Corrupt Legislation'' (1896) by [[Elihu Vedder]]. Library of Congress [[Thomas Jefferson Building]], Washington, D.C.]]
Corruption is often most evident in countries with the smallest per capita incomes, relying on foreign aid for health services. Local political interception of donated money from overseas is especially prevalent in [[Sub-Saharan Africa]]n nations, where it was reported in the 2006 [[World Bank|World Bank Report]] that about half of the funds that were donated for health usages were never invested into the health sectors or given to those needing medical attention.<ref name="jstor.org">{{cite journal|jstor=20032209|journal=Foreign Affairs|volume=86|issue=1|pages=14–38|last1=Garrett|first1=Laurie|title=The Challenge of Global Health|year=2007}}</ref> Instead, the donated money was expended through "[[Counterfeit medications|counterfeit drugs]], siphoning off of drugs to the black market, and payments to ghost employees". Ultimately, there is a sufficient amount of money for health in developing countries, but local corruption denies the wider citizenry the resource they require.<ref name="jstor.org" />

Corruption facilitates environmental destruction. While corrupt societies may have formal legislation to protect the environment, it cannot be enforced if officials can easily be bribed. The same applies to social rights worker protection, [[Trade union|unionization]] prevention, and [[child labor]]. Violation of these laws rights enables corrupt countries to gain illegitimate economic advantage in the international market. The [[Nobel Prize]]-winning economist [[Amartya Sen]] has observed that "there is no such thing as an apolitical food problem." While drought and other naturally occurring events may trigger [[famine]] conditions, it is government action or inaction that determines its severity, and often even whether or not a famine will occur.<ref name="Forbes">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.forbes.com/2007/08/15/wipro-tata-corruption-ent-law-cx_kw_0814whartonindia.html|title=Will Growth Slow Corruption In India?|magazine=Forbes | date=2007-08-15}}</ref>

Governments with strong tendencies towards [[kleptocracy]] can undermine [[food security]] even when harvests are good. Officials often steal state property. In [[Bihar]], [[India]], more than 80% of the subsidized food aid to poor is stolen by corrupt officials.<ref name="Forbes"/> Similarly, food aid is often robbed at gunpoint by governments, criminals, and warlords alike, and sold for a profit. The 20th century is full of many examples of governments undermining the food security of their own nations – sometimes intentionally.<ref>{{cite news|last=Sheeter |first=Laura |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7111296.stm |title=Ukraine remembers famine horror |work=BBC News |date=2007-11-24 |access-date=2009-12-05}}</ref>

===Effects on humanitarian aid===
The scale of [[humanitarian aid]] to the poor and unstable regions of the world grows, but it is highly [[social vulnerability|vulnerable]] to corruption, with food aid, construction and other highly valued assistance as the most at risk.<ref name=ODI1>Sarah Bailey (2008) [http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=2385&title=corruption-risks-perceptions-prevention-humanitarian-assistance Need and greed: corruption risks, perceptions and prevention in humanitarian assistance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307104217/http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=2385&title=corruption-risks-perceptions-prevention-humanitarian-assistance |date=2012-03-07 }} [[Overseas Development Institute]]</ref> Food aid can be directly and physically diverted from its intended destination, or indirectly through the manipulation of assessments, targeting, registration and distributions to favor certain groups or individuals.<ref name=ODI1/>

In construction and shelter there are numerous opportunities for diversion and profit through substandard workmanship, kickbacks for contracts and favouritism in the provision of valuable shelter material.<ref name=ODI1/> Thus while humanitarian aid agencies are usually most concerned about aid being diverted by including too many, recipients themselves are most concerned about exclusion.<ref name=ODI1/> Access to aid may be limited to those with connections, to those who pay bribes or are forced to give sexual favors.<ref name=ODI1/> Equally, those able to do so may manipulate statistics to inflate the number of beneficiaries and siphon off additional assistance.<ref name=ODI1/>

Malnutrition, illness, wounds, torture, harassment of specific groups within the population, disappearances, extrajudicial executions and the forcible displacement of people are all found in many armed conflicts. Aside from their direct effects on the individuals concerned, the consequences of these tragedies for local systems must also be considered: the destruction of crops and places of cultural importance, the breakdown of economic infrastructure and of health-care facilities such as hospitals, etc.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/article/other/57jpcj.htm|title=The impact of humanitarian aid on conflict development - ICRC|first=Pierre|last=Perrin|date=30 June 1998|website=www.icrc.org}}</ref>

===Effects on health===
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2018}}

Corruption plays a huge role in health care system starting from the hospital, to the government and lifted to the other institutions that promote quality and affordable health care to the people. The efficiency of health care delivery in any country is heavily dependent on accountable and transparent systems, proper management of both financial and human resources and timely supply of services to the vulnerable populace of the nation.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Nazim|first=Habibov|date=March 2016|title=Effect of corruption on healthcare satisfaction in post-soviet nations|journal=Social Science & Medicine|volume=152|pages= 119–124|doi=10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.01.044|pmid=26854622|doi-access=free}}</ref>

At the basic level, greed skyrockets corruption. When the structure of the health care system is not adequately addressed beginning from oversight in healthcare delivery and supply of drugs and tendering process, mismanagement and misappropriation of funds will always be observed. Corruption also can undermine health care service delivery which in turn disorients the lives of the poor. Corruption leads to violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms as people supposed to benefit from the basic health care from the governments are denied due to unscrupulous processes driven by greed. Therefore, for a country to keep citizens healthy there must be efficient systems and proper resources that can tame the evils like corruption that underpin it.

=== Effects on education ===
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2018}}
Education forms the basis and the fabric in which a society is transformed and different facets of well-being are shaped. Corruption in higher education has been prevalent and calls for immediate intervention. Increased corruption in higher education has led to growing global concern among governments, students and educators and other stakeholders. Those offering services in the higher education institutions are facing pressure that highly threatens the integral value of higher education enterprise. Corruption in higher education has a larger negative influence, it destroys the relation between personal effort and reward anticipation. Moreover, employees and students develop a belief that personal success does not come from hard work and merit but through canvassing with teachers and taking other shortcuts.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Borcan|first=Oana|date=February 2017|title=Fighting corruption in education|journal=American Economic Journal|volume= 9|pages= 180–209}}</ref>

Academic promotions in the higher education institutions have been disabled by unlimited corruption. Presently, promotion is based on personal connections than professional achievements. This has led to dramatic increase in the number of professors and exhibits their rapid status loss.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Altbach|first=Philiph|date=2015|title=The Question of Corruption|journal=International Higher Education|volume= 34}}</ref> Utmost the flawed processes in the academic institutions has led to unbaked graduates who are not well fit to the job market. Corruption hinders the international standards of an education system. Additionally, Plagiarism is a form of corruption in academic research, where it affects originality and disables learning. Individual violations are in close relation to the operation ways of a system.
Furthermore, the universities may be in relationships and dealings with business and people in government, which majority of them enrol in doctoral studies without the undergraduate program. Consequently, money, power and related influence compromise education standards since they are fueling factors. A Student may finish thesis report within a shorter time upon which compromises the quality of work delivered and questions the threshold of the higher education.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Heyneman|first=Stephen|date=2015|title=The corruption of ethics in higher education|journal=International Higher Education|volume= 62}}</ref>

=== Other areas: public safety, trade unions, police corruption, etc. ===

{{More citations needed section|date=August 2016}}<!--many scandalous examples, each of which should have a reference to serious documentation-->
Corruption is not specific to poor, developing, or transition countries. In western countries, cases of bribery and other forms of corruption in all possible fields exist: under-the-table payments made to reputed surgeons by patients attempting to be on top of the list of forthcoming surgeries,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://vancouversun.com/health/Cash+bribes+patients+atop+surgery+waiting+lists/3893239/story.html |title=Cash bribes put patients atop surgery waiting lists |newspaper=The Vancouver Sun |date=November 27, 2010 |last=Fidelman |first=Charlie |access-date=2011-01-21 }}{{dead link|date=June 2012}}</ref> bribes paid by suppliers to the automotive industry in order to sell low-quality connectors used for instance in safety equipment such as airbags, bribes paid by suppliers to manufacturers of defibrillators (to sell low-quality capacitors), contributions paid by wealthy parents to the "social and culture fund" of a prestigious university in exchange for it to accept their children, bribes paid to obtain diplomas, financial and other advantages granted to unionists by members of the executive board of a car manufacturer in exchange for employer-friendly positions and votes, etc. Examples are endless.

These various manifestations of corruption can ultimately present a danger for public health; they can discredit specific, essential institutions or social relationships.   Osipian summarized a 2008 "study of corruption perceptions among Russians ... .30 percent of the respondents marked the level of corruption as very high, while another 44 percent as high. 19 percent considered it as average and only 1 percent as low. The most corrupt in people's minds are traffic police (33 percent), local authorities (28 percent), police (26 percent), healthcare (16 percent), and education (15 percent). 52 percent of the respondents had experiences of giving money or gifts to
medical professionals while 36 percent made informal payments to educators." He claimed that this corruption lowered the rate of economic growth in Russia, because the students disadvantaged by this corruption could not adopt better work methods as quickly, lowering thereby [[total factor productivity]] for Russia.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Osipian|first1=Ararat|title=Education Corruption, Reform, and Growth: Case of Post-Soviet Russia|url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/17447/|website=Munich Personal RePEc Archive|publisher=Munich University Library|access-date=2016-05-21|date=2009-09-22|ref = MPRA Paper No. 17447}}</ref>

Corruption can affect the various components of sports activities (referees, players, medical and laboratory staff involved in anti-doping controls, members of national sport federation and international committees deciding about the allocation of contracts and competition places). Cases exist against (members of) various types of non-profit and non-government organizations, as well as religious organizations. Ultimately, the distinction between public and private sector corruption sometimes appears rather artificial, and national anti-corruption initiatives may need to avoid legal and other loopholes in the coverage of the instruments.