Since the turn of the millennium, studies have demonstrated a relationship between gender and corruption, finding that in countries where female political participation is higher, indicators of corruption are lower. This thesis approaches this debate in two ways, quantitatively and qualitatively. A multivariate regression analysis updates data for the year 2015 and incorporates underexplored institutional variables. Results show that the proportion of women in politics is positively and significantly correlated with reduced corruption, even when controlling for these institutional variables. The findings from this analysis are applied to a focused comparison of two countries, Rwanda and Haiti, which have very different female representation and corruption outcomes, despite the presence of a very similar institution, a 30 percent legislated gender quota. Using feminist institutionalism as a theoretical guide for the analysis, this thesis demonstrates that institutions such as democracy and auditing standards moderate the relationship between female representation and corruption outcomes. On that basis, it concludes that while increasing female participation in politics can modestly contribute to reducing corruption, linking female participation to strengthening democratic governance and institutionalizing accountability can further reduce corruption in some developing country contexts.

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Corruption is increasingly playing a critical role in international investment arbitration disputes. Investors have lost rights under BITs against a State due to corruptly securing its investment. Corruption has been raised by the investor as a sword, and by the State as a shield against investor’s claims. This has raised concerns about whether international investment arbitrations and institutions should be seized with corruption matters and if so, in what form and substance. This thesis argues that the contemporary international investment regulatory regime is inadequate to combat corruption in foreign investment transactions. The main challenge with the bulk of the international investment agreements which contain anti- corruption clauses is that these provisions are couched as general principles and prohibitions, merely encouraging the host States to enact and enforce anti-corruption laws. These instruments are of less functional value to investment arbitrators when faced with allegations of corruption. It further argues that the prevailing host State’s legal mechanisms are inherently inadequate to effectively regulate and combat corruption relating to foreign direct investments, and therefore there is a need for an international intervention through international investment agreements. The situation is exacerbated by the divergent approaches taken by investment arbitrators when dealing with corruption in investment transactions. This thesis recommends the adoption of an elaborate anti-corruption clause in international investment agreements. The main contribution of this thesis is to suggest a framework for combatting corruption in investment transactions. It provides a model anti-corruption treaty clause which attempts to promote accountability of both the foreign investor and the State. This model anti-corruption clause includes guiding factors that arbitrators in the investor-State arbitration may take into account when arbitrating disputes involving corruption, so that they can meaningfully contribute towards combatting corruption. / Thesis (LLD)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Public Law / LLD / Unrestricted

Three studies on foreign aid, rent-seeking, and economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa are presented. The first study examines the possible simultaneity that may exist between a donor’s provision of aid and the rentseeking (corruption) activities in the recipient country. Does the amount of aid depend on the lack of corruption in a country? Simultaneously, does the level of corruption depend on the amount of aid and the type of donor? The main goals of this paper are to examine whether such simultaneity exists and whether the impact of aid depends on the type of the donor, either multilateral or bilateral. The second study extends the first model by incorporating an additional equation for GDP per capita. It examines whether simultaneity exists between the three variables: foreign aid, corruption, and GDP per capita and whether the relationship depends upon the source of the foreign aid. Adding GDP per capita as an endogenous variable will provide another key to understanding the lack of long-term effectiveness for foreign aid in sub-Saharan Africa. The third and final study uses a fixed effects model to examine the relationship between foreign aid and the level of corruption in sub-Saharan Africa. Accounting for fixed effects allows me to examine whether unobserved characteristics of recipient countries play a role in explaining the impact of aid on corruption.

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Yes / In this study, we investigate the mediating effect of institutional networking on the relationship between perceived corruption and the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We also examine the moderating impact of financial slack on the relationship between perceived corruption and institutional networking. We test our moderated mediation model using data from 212 SMEs operating in Ghana. The findings from the study show that perceived corruption is positively related to institutional networking and this relationship is amplified when levels of financial slack are greater. The findings also show that institutional networking positively mediates the relationship between perceived corruption and SME growth. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Après avoir constaté que le cadre juridique national ne se saisit que partiellement de l’infraction de corruption, les États ont massivement adhéré aux conventions régionales et internationales de lutte contre la corruption. Dans un souci de consensus, la souplesse des termes utilisés dans ces conventions a masqué la fermeté de leur finalité. Pendant que cette apparente souplesse a suscité la réception différentielle des instruments conventionnels, suivant le système juridique de l’État partie considéré, leur évaluation par les différents mécanismes de suivi suggère l’harmonisation du droit en matière d’anticorruption. Concrètement, il s’observe que cette finalité harmonisatrice ne peut être effective sans un mécanisme coercitif de contrôle, mis en oeuvre par la plainte ou la communication de tout acteur social intéressé par la lutte contre la corruption. Seulement, les différentes perceptions qu’ont certains États de l’initiation des poursuites devant la Cour pénale internationale rendent utopique, à l’heure actuelle, l’institutionnalisation d’une Cour pénale internationale des crimes économiques. La solution la plus plausible, pour lutter contre la corruption, exige que les acteurs sociaux s’organisent en réseau de poursuivants. Celui-ci devra saisir tous les mécanismes juridiques nationaux, étrangers et internationaux rattachés à l’infraction de corruption par le même fait « corruptionnel ». Cette concurrence implicite entre des instances quasi-juridictionnelles et juridictionnelles de divers ordres juridiques instaure entre eux une compétition spontanée ; laquelle participera à l’amélioration des garanties d’indépendance des juridictions nationales. / Noting that the national legal framework could only take into consideration partly the transnational corruption offense, the States have massively joined regional and international conventions against corruption. For the sake of consensus, the flexibility of terms used within these conventions covered up their purpose. For example, when the concept of functional equivalence generated a differential receipt of the conventional instrument according to legal system of a given member State; the evaluation by different follow-up mechanisms of those instruments seems to be suggesting the harmonisation of criminal law. In practical terms, it is observed that this harmonising purpose cannot be effective without a coercive monitoring mechanism implemented by the complaint/communication of every interested social actor against corruption. However, the political discrepancies noted in some mechanisms of criminal law make nowadays difficult the institutionalization of an international criminal court for economic crimes. The most plausible anticorruption alternative seems to be that social actors get organized in prosecutorial network. This network should have access to all national, foreign, and international juridical mechanisms connected with the transnational corruption offense by the same “corruptional’’ fact. That implicit competition between the judicial and quasi-judicial bodies of different legal systems creates among themselves a spontaneous competition. While participating on improvement of national jurisdictions, this competition represents also an essential condition for their independence.

published_or_final_version / Asian Studies / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Corruption in business occurs in situations of a quid pro quo relationship between public officials and business managers representing corporations. Many a time, such corrupt situations can harm stakeholder interests. Managers, as decision-makers, in corruption-related situations may fail to understand the impact of their decisions in such situation for they operate from a position of "position-dependent objectivity" (Sen, 2002) focusing on economic objectives usually. They may fail to understand that their involvement in corrupt acts can lead to violation of fundamental stakeholder issues such as human rights as in the cases of Shell and Enron (discussed in this thesis). The thesis examines the meaning of corruption in relation to its stakeholder impact and proposes that corporate good governance in corruption-related situations is a matter of ethical decision-making, exceeding legal compliance. It explores the decision-making factors that operate within an individual manager while dealing with corruption-related situations in business and maps an analytical mental model of a decision-making manager in such situations. The thesis proposes 'Corruption-related Decision-making' (CRDM) as an orderly way of thinking for managers to deal with corruption-related situations in business. The CRDM concept is demonstrated through the use of a new Corruption-related Decision-making model that protects human rights, environmental issues, sustainable development and any other relevant stakeholder issue that one may wish to include. The relevance of the CRDM concept and the model was evaluated in a survey of forty-one multinational companies from Mumbai, India. The survey confirmed that none of the respondents used any decision-making tools while dealing with corruption-related situations. The survey revealed that 40 out of 41 companies experienced rent-seeking behaviour (bribes demanded) in India. Out of these 41 companies, 26 companies 'usually' lost business due to non-compliance with bribe demands and another 9 companies lost business 'sometimes.' The survey also explored the role of 'fear of loss of business' in the decision-making process and found that 'fear of loss of business' led decision-makers change stance from a state of passive corruption (facing demand) to a position of active corruption (making an offer), with 27 companies actually moving from a position of passive corruption to active corruption. All 41 companies, without a single exception, believed (when asked) that corruption can adversely affect stakeholder issues such as human rights. The survey findings confirm the relevance of the CRDM model as a decision-making tool and as a good practice document in corruption-related situations. The CRDM model can motivate an internal review of a manager's persona with a reminder that ethical decision-making and protection of stakeholder rights is possible in corruption-related situations. The concept of CRDM is a potential contribution in dealing with the illegitimate, the illegal and the oppressive aspects of international business.

Magister Legum - LLM / German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)