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[Global corruption report 2001] West and west-central africa
Jimo, Hakeem Sy, Tidiane Wade, Dame
Jimo, Hakeem
Sy, Tidiane
Wade, Dame
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rr_wwc_africa.pdf
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West and West-Central Africa includes some of the poorest countries in the world: of the 15 lowest ranking countries in the UN’s Human Development Index, ten are in the region.1 Several factors contribute to the persistence of regional poverty, and corruption is definitely one of them. Oil and gas have brought wealth to some in Nigeria, and both Equatorial Guinea and Chad are on the threshold of similar bonanzas. But the oil industry has historically provided opportunities for corruption on a massive scale, and the diamond wealth of Sierra Leone has nurtured conflict and corruption both there and in bordering countries. Since independence from colonial rule in the 1960s, periods of dictatorship have alternated with military rule and one-party regimes, all of which have embedded corruption deep in political systems. Most countries have also seen periods of democracy, and recent years have witnessed a number of transitions to multi-party politics, frequently at the behest of international donors. Such transitions have exposed governments to greater public scrutiny. Democracy was restored in the regional ‘superpower’ Nigeria with the election of Olusegun Obasanjo as President in 1999. Recent elections in Ghana and Senegal offer further hope of a sustainable democratic future for the region. A military coup and civil unrest in Côte d’Ivoire, previously an island of political stability and comparative wealth, shows how quickly change can come. In the volatile countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, a developing regional conflict has resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of refugees. Many countries in the region are currently suffering from some form of military conflict, either with other countries or with rebel groups within their own borders – further reducing the funds available for spending on much-needed public services.
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2001
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393571100X
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With permission of the license/copyright holder