ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the reader to the nature of formal and informal governance in Central Asia and its relationship with corruption through an examination of the case of Kyrgyzstan. Despite changes to Kyrgyzstan’s formal political system, the logic of informal governance, with its rules and practices, remains in place and is widely applied behind the facade of the formal frameworks. To understand why political reforms and anti-corruption movements have failed in the country, this chapter discusses the role of informal governance in obstructing political reforms. The case of Kyrgyzstan demonstrates how practices of informal governance are pervasive and adaptive to formal political systems, illustrating how such practices can be detrimental to the transparency of a political system in the region and impact on formal institutional development. At the same time, such practices contribute to regime stability for a certain period, albeit with negative effects on the control of corruption and a constant change of the regime.
