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Anonymous — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 10:11:27 CDT

BribeWiki is about capturing economic information today, for a better tomorrow.

Read the Bribe Wiki Manifesto and report or research bribery in your country or area of experience.

Submit your stories of bribes and payments into our website. The more information placed mmmin BribeWiki, the sooner bribes may shrink or disappear.

Cost of Corruption

Anonymous — Sun, 30 Jul 2006 23:33:37 CDT

Say what you will about the Worldbank, but they collect some interesting stats. check out the latest corruption stories here: Europe & Central Asia corruption
Things are getting better :) the Economist gives a nice synopsis if you are a subscriber check here economist article basically the perception of corruption as a major issue for business people in Europe and central Asian countries is improving. Russia is a notable exception :(
The good thing about reduced corruption is that it leads to security, stability and economic growth for almost everyone in a country. The strengthening of trust in institutions and relationships means more entrepreneurism and lower costs of capital for everyone. Now for the Shocker. The average firm still pays 2.9% in turner in bribes. Think about that for a moment. Doesn't sound much like the average person. But if you know how companies are valued from an EBIT perspective this is a huge drain on these economies. Many companies on US stock exchanges trade and are valued using a metric called PE or P/E multiple. this is basically the price of the share over the earnings (earning before interest & taxes) EBIT of the firm.
Firms in the US trade at a fairly high 18 PE. What this means is that for every extra $1 of earnings the value of the shares would theoretically increase $18. Now think about 2.9% of cash that just disappeared as a bribe. Ouch! If a company has revenue of $100m per year and pays $2.9m per year in bribes, that is a lot of value lost to shareholders and the economy.

Lets say the company above had 6% earnings a healthy return for US companies. The company above would be worth 18x$6m or $108m. Now if the same firm could recapture the 2.9% from bribes it would be worth $160.2m. Think about it corruption is costing the shareholders of this company $52m in value. Those shareholders may be family members, insurance companies, pension holders etc.

Without corruption these companies would be worth $48m more. Companies would be worth 48% more without corruption in these countries in this simple example. We are talking tens of billions of dollars in these economies.

That shareholder value could be borrowed against as debt. Consider the lost oppurtunity if companies or economies were able to have access to just 25% more capital for growth and investment in training, machinary, research. If we look at the big picture and make a gross extrapolation to GDP, there is a lot of value that disappears due to corruption. This value could be taxed at corporate rates and flow through to the government and re-invested in health care and education. That 2.9% factor for corruption sounds small, but think about the "value destroyed"

By the way how would you feel if your annual salary had %2.9 taken away by thugs every year. The good news is things are changing. Now it is time to get them changing faster. There is money and a lot of lives at stake, especially in poor countries. If you spot corruption (big or small) report it at : Bribewiki

Information sources on corruption

Anonymous — Sun, 30 Jul 2006 23:29:47 CDT

Here is a link to the WorldBank web page on corruption http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/governance/

latest updates July 2006 on Eastern Europe and Central Asia from the World Bank

An excellent book on corruption "the white man's burden", opinions from a World Bank veteran

Transparency international (international corruption index) One of the best sources for comparative analysis of countries.

Hungary

Anonymous — Mon, 05 Jun 2006 20:25:13 CDT

There is no abstract available for this page revision.

Egypt

Anonymous — Wed, 31 May 2006 10:58:55 CDT

Bribe paid in Cairo in December 2002 to Sr. politicians son at top most level of position in ministry of telecommunications ministry. Bribe was $30,000 USD cash in hand as "gift" which helped allow UAE based value added services Telecom provider operate in Egyptian market.

Bribe Example

Anonymous — Tue, 30 May 2006 19:43:11 CDT

Bribes should be written up and submitted to BribeWiki in the proper category and have the following attributes assigned:

Country of bribe transaction (or recipients govt country)
Time of bribe (month and year) enough detail to establish prices, but not enough to identify actual transaction
Agency or govt dept involved (ministry of information/transportation/energy/property) etc.
Amount of bribe and services rendered or expected in exchange for the (gift, cadeux, facilitation payment or consultation)
Any other information to describe the standards or anticipated going rate for bribes of this nature.

Transport Example (petty bribe)

United States

Anonymous — Sun, 28 May 2006 18:07:11 CDT

Any information on the going rate for a Congressman is welcome!

also submit the costs in various parts of the country to "fix" a parking ticket, health inspector, get a building permit or other priviliges granted.
According to http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2005 The US is the 17th least corrupt country in the world. Plenty of room to get better.

Niger

Anonymous — Sun, 28 May 2006 17:54:25 CDT

In niger in 1992 (sorry a bit old) when travelling along the southern main highway it is customary to be asked to (present) ones papers at various road blocks outside of small towns. This "police" or locals extract small amount ranging from $3-$5 per vehicle. CFA 500. The irony is that the country had a 5% literacy rate, thus the chances of the papers being "read" was low. Fortunately bank notes are easy for everyone to read.

The driver is held up at the roadside blockade, usually no more than a lean to shed with a piece of string across the road. the police office comes out to "inspect" the documents for the vehicle and driver. The driver puts paper bank notes equivelant to CFA 500 into the folded documents. The officer visits the shed to inspect the documents. Upon returning from the shed, the money is gone and the vehicle is waved on. A classic case of petty corruption hindering the speed and progress of a country. This is done at almost every village and is seen as a rightful privilige for a woefully under trained and under-paid police force. The more valuable the percieved cargo the more extracted bribe. This takes place every 10-20 miles along the main road in Niger.

Usually large well marked NGO vehicles pass with out paying the bribe as they are assumed to be connected to power and thus immune from bribery extraction.

Zimbabwe

Anonymous — Tue, 23 May 2006 01:24:17 CDT

There is no abstract available for this page revision.

United Kingdom

Anonymous — Tue, 23 May 2006 01:23:41 CDT

There is no abstract available for this page revision.

BribeWiki Manifesto

Anonymous — Tue, 23 May 2006 01:22:10 CDT

BribeWiki Manifesto
BribeWiki …spreading digital daylight.
What is BribeWiki?: BribeWiki is a website where individuals anonymously post their experiences with bribery.
BribeWiki strives to collect and organize the “going” rate for facilitating transactions in various countries and locations. It is hoped that transparency will reduce the scope and scale of bribes and their associated social and economic impacts.
BribeWiki does not judge, investigate, or accuse any one or group of illegal or immoral behavior. BribeWiki simply seeks to capture and reflect current activities around the world.

1. Why is bribery or corruption bad?
According to the UN http://www.un.org/events/10thcongress/2088b.htm
In one World Bank survey, more than 150 high-ranking public officials and top citizens from over 60 developing nations ranked corruption as the biggest impediment to economic development and growth in their countries.
Corrupt practices drain government coffers, plays havoc with free trade and scares away investors. The World Bank estimates that corruption can reduce a country's growth rate by 0.5 to 1.0 percentage points per year. IMF research has shown that investment in corrupt countries is almost 5 per cent less than in countries that are relatively corruption-free.
Standard and Poor's, the bond rating agency, gives investors a 50 to 100 per cent chance of losing their entire investments within five years in countries with various degrees of corruption. Such odds make long-term investment which is of most benefit to a country risky and unlikely.
"It is widely acknowledged that corruption scares away foreign investment and development aid", according to Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the Vienna-based United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP). "Obviously, it is wiser to invest in countries with more transparency, independent and well-regulated banks and strong court systems."
As evidence mounts of the huge economic costs of corruption, the United Nations has decided to step up efforts to fight it.

2. How much corruption is there?

People responding who said they had bribed “paid” an official within the last year.
Developing Countries
18%
Transitional Economies
13%
Industrialized world
1%
1996/97 International Crime Victims Survey (ICVS)

3. Why is there bribery or corruption?

1. Organized crime
Organized crime is one example of corruption. In this case independent (non-state sanctioned) agents engage in corruption sometimes knowingly in conjunction with state agents.
2. Rational economic behavior
Sadly some procedures and bureaucracies are so poorly organized or officials are so poorly paid, that corruption is a rational and “normal” economic behaviors. In this case the actors are more victims of poor bureaucracy, legislation and government than criminals. Some developmental economists estimate that poor procedure ties up $9.3 Trillion in assets. (Hernando de Soto)
3. Endemic
Some corruption is so prevalent it is considered business as usual by all parties involved. Unfortunately extra legal behavior weakens the institutions and legitimacy of various officials associated with it. In many cases it may be argued
4. Poor pay for officials
In many countries officials are paid so poorly they are expected to supplement their incomes via their office. This can range from law makers to teachers. It is hoped that various countries identify this component of corruption and rectify it with proper pay and expectations of conduct.
5. Limited effective rule of law
Unfortunately the rule of law can be poorly enforced or subject to corrupt interpretation. This unfortunately can lead to the undermining of the state as a legitimate actor or advocate of law and behavior.

4. Where does corruption occur?
Corruption occurs in every country worldwide. The levels of corruption vary. The best source for indicating the level of corruption in any given country is Transparency International.

5. What is a bribe?
According to Webster’s Dictionary:
1. Something, such as money or a favor, offered or given to a person in a position of trust to influence that person's views or conduct.
2. Something serving to influence or persuade.

6. How does BribeWiki work?
People may anonymously post their experiences of paying bribes to public or private officials in exchange or anticipation of behavioral change by that official. Individuals posting information to BribeWiki are requested to refrain from posting names of recipients or givers of bribes. The objective is to indicate the “going” rate for various bribes. It is hoped that various actors in positions of authority will investigate the reported activities to ascertain veracity.

7. What does BribeWiki hope to achieve?
BribeWiki hopes to put daylight on activities that may cause economic harm to others via their illicit nature. In general many forms of payments are made and labeled as consulting fees, facilitation payments and others. BribeWiki believes that any such payments should be public knowledge. As the accepted behaviors and methods vary from culture to culture, if something is OK then a little digital daylight should be OK.

8. Who can participate in BribeWiki?
Anyone from any country or position is welcome to post their findings, to BribeWiki. BribeWiki strives to have a neutral point of view posted without bias or accusations, merely a statement of fact.

9. Is BribeWiki liable for illegal postings?
BribeWiki does not own or endorse the veracity or truthfulness of posts placed on it. BribeWiki is not condoning illegal behavior or in any way encouraging illegal behavior. BribeWiki also believes that unless convicted by a recognized authority all mentions of names or parties are statements of opinion and not fact.

10. What can and should not be said in a BribeWiki posting?
BribeWiki encourages a NPOV (neutral point of view). BribeWiki discourages the act of explicitly or implicitly naming individuals.

11. What rights do I have to change a BribeWiki page, if I believe it is incorrect.
As a wiki, anyone can change a page at almost any time. Various activities will be discouraged, in order to facilitate the main objectives of the site.

12. How does BribeWiki hope to make things better?
BribeWiki only hopes to act as a gathering point of anecdotal evidence. BribeWiki believes that corruption is best solved via proper channels within various countries. It is hoped that via publicity various actors in countries will assume more active roles in minimizing corruption.

13. Who runs BribeWiki?
BribeWiki is currently run Nick Gogerty a private individual who likes to see how technology and people interact on the micro and macro scale.

14. Who started BribeWiki?
Nick Gogerty came up with idea of BribeWiki while traveling in the spring of 2005.

15. Can BribeWiki promise anonymity?
BribeWiki allows people to post anonymously, but cannot guarantee anonymity as various governments can track IP addresses and participants. For those individuals seeking anonymity, various IP anonymizers are available online.

16. Will I be liable for things I post on BribeWiki?
You will be liable for posting on BribeWiki to the same level you would be liable for any online posting. This varies from country to country.

17. Who is BribeWiki intended to help?
BribeWiki is intended to help anyone directly or indirectly affected by corruption.

18. Is BribeWiki a charity?
BribeWiki is currently not set up as a charity, it is a private project. It is believed in the future BribeWiki will be established as a charity with an independent international board of directors.