Corruption Propensity and Mitigation at Different Phases of Infrastructure Development

Abstract

Corruption is a social evil that resonates far and deep in societies, eroding trust in government, weakening the rule of law, impairing economic development, and exacerbating poverty, social tension, and inequality. Each phase of infrastructure development life cycle has peculiar vulnerabilities to corrupt practices. Pre-emptive identification of avenues for corrupt actions at each phase can serve as a starting point for new initiatives or for renewed reinforcement of existing corruption mitigation programs. The existing literature on corruption does not address the issue from an infrastructure life cycle perspective. The objective of this paper is to identify opportunities at each phase of the infrastructure life cycle where stakeholders and actors can help undertake specific actions to mitigate corruption. The paper’s methodology characterizes corruption and mitigation measures in a framework based on the phases of infrastructure development life cycle and then connects these measures to the relevant actors and stakeholders.