Greece: The Cost of a Bribe
April 4th, 2012
The Greek debt crisis has left many of its citizens on the margins, presenting one of the greatest socio-economic upheavals in the nation’s recent history.
With the effects of the crisis endemic and no immediate end in sight, it is important to understand some of the underlying causes of the failure, especially corruption. Petty corruption cost Greece €554 million in 2011, according to the 2011 National Survey on Corruption in Greece. This is €78 million less than in 2010.
To get to the bottom of corruption, Transparency International analyses a range of critical societal institutions (such as the business, media or political parties) and assesses their ability to prevent corruption. This ‘national integrity system’ assessment has been carried out in more than 70 countries worldwide, with 25 of the studies recently completed or being finalised across Europe.
The Greece report finds that several “pillars” of the Greek anti‐corruption system have fundamental flaws, the most significant of which is a crisis of values, typified by broad scale acceptance of and participation in corruption.
Transparency International blogs from the launch of the report.