A recent survey by Afrobarometer in 39 Africa countries revealed that 67% of Africans feel their governments are ineffective in fighting corruption.
The 2023 report added that 71% of those who report corruption incidents to the authorities don’t feel safe afterward.
“Two-thirds (67%) of Africans say their governments are failing in the fight against corruption, and 71% say people who report corruption to the authorities risk retaliation (Dulani, Asiamah, & Zindikirani, 2023),” the report said.
According to the report, Africans are increasingly concerned about the spread of corruption in their countries. It further showed that nearly six out of ten citizens across the continent believe corruption has worsened in the past year.
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Given the effects of official corruption on popular support for and satisfaction with democracy, the news from recent findings about corruption trends is not good.
“On average across 39 countries, nearly six in 10 citizens (58%) say corruption levels in their countries increased over the past year, including 82% in South Africa and 87% in Eswatini. Only three countries record majorities who say corruption decreased: Benin (70%), Mali (64%), and Zambia (53%),” an excerpt of the report said.
The report also revealed that a significant majority of respondents perceive widespread corruption among key public figures, including government appointees, MPs, judiciary officials, and civil servants.
“Perceptions of widespread corruption show similar increases for members of Parliament (+11 points) and the judiciary (+8 points), with marginal increases of 3 points for local government councillors and civil servants,” it added.
“Levels of perceived corruption among political leaders paint a similar picture: Across up to 30 countries for which we have complete data, 38% of respondents say “most” or “all” officials in their president’s office are corrupt, up by 13 percentage points since 2011/2013,,” it added.
38% of respondents believe most or all officials in the president’s office are corrupt, representing a 13% increase since 2011/2013.
