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Impact of structural adjustment programmes on corruption

The implementation and outcomes of structural adjustment programmes (SAPs), promoted by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to help countries all around the world overcome their economic crises, have generated significant controversy. The SAPs’ impact on the economic development and levels of corruption of those countries are of special concern. Regarding corruption, the literature presents two main positions: one, the anti-corruption discourse legitimises and justifies the need for SPAs. Two, SAPs do not actually reduce corruption but they exacerbate it. Contextual conditions and interactions of SAPs with other policies make it difficult to establish a direct causal relationship between SAPs and levels of corruption, but studies show that aspects associated with those economic reforms have exacerbated corruption risks.

19 December 2018
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Impact of structural adjustment programmes on corruption

Main points

  • SAPs can potentially increase corruption at the same time that they can be legitimised by anti-corruption discourses.
  • The phase of implementation of SAPs is especially vulnerable to corruption.
  • The level of corruption in a country can also influence the success of SAPs.

Cite this publication


Zúñiga, N. (2018) Impact of structural adjustment programmes on corruption. Bergen: U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre, Chr. Michelsen Institute (U4 Helpdesk Answer 2018:26)

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Nieves Zúñiga

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