The usual spin from corporations and governments when bribery raises its ugly head is that it was engaged in by a few rotten apples. Not so, says a new report from no lesser a body than the OECD.
"The full scale of corruption involving multinational companies has been revealed by the west’s leading thinktank in a study that found most bribes were paid in developed countries and with the full knowledge of senior management.
The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said its examination of 400 deals over the past 15 years had shown the average bribe was worth almost $14m (£8.9m) – typically 11% of the value of the transaction.
Bribes were usually paid to win contracts from state-owned or controlled companies in the west, rather than in the developing world, and most bribe payers and takers were from wealthy countries, the 34-nation OECD said.
“Most international bribes are paid by large companies, usually with the knowledge of senior management,” the study said. It added that the sums handed out in bribes were worth 34.5% of the average profit on a transaction, but the complexity and concealed nature of many deals meant its findings revealed only “the tip of the iceberg”.
The foreign bribery report looked at cases – from the 41 countries, including seven non-OECD members, that are signatories to the OECD anti-bribery convention – of companies or individuals that were involved in bribing foreign public officials. The cases took place between February 1999, when the convention came into force, and June 2014.
Almost two-thirds of cases occurred in four sectors: mining (19%); construction (15%); transportation and storage (15%); and information and communication (10%). More than a quarter of the bribes were promised or given to employees of state-owned companies and a further 11% involved customs officials. Heads of state and ministers were bribed in 5% of cases but received 11% of total bribes."
"The full scale of corruption involving multinational companies has been revealed by the west’s leading thinktank in a study that found most bribes were paid in developed countries and with the full knowledge of senior management.
The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said its examination of 400 deals over the past 15 years had shown the average bribe was worth almost $14m (£8.9m) – typically 11% of the value of the transaction.
Bribes were usually paid to win contracts from state-owned or controlled companies in the west, rather than in the developing world, and most bribe payers and takers were from wealthy countries, the 34-nation OECD said.
“Most international bribes are paid by large companies, usually with the knowledge of senior management,” the study said. It added that the sums handed out in bribes were worth 34.5% of the average profit on a transaction, but the complexity and concealed nature of many deals meant its findings revealed only “the tip of the iceberg”.
The foreign bribery report looked at cases – from the 41 countries, including seven non-OECD members, that are signatories to the OECD anti-bribery convention – of companies or individuals that were involved in bribing foreign public officials. The cases took place between February 1999, when the convention came into force, and June 2014.
Almost two-thirds of cases occurred in four sectors: mining (19%); construction (15%); transportation and storage (15%); and information and communication (10%). More than a quarter of the bribes were promised or given to employees of state-owned companies and a further 11% involved customs officials. Heads of state and ministers were bribed in 5% of cases but received 11% of total bribes."
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