ABSTRACT

Corruption is being linked to a wide range of other developmental issues, including undermining democratic institutions, slowing economic development, contributing to government instability, poverty and inequality, among others. Corruption has been gaining prominence in domestic and international governmental fora. This chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts in the subsequent chapters of this book. The chapter analyses the conceptual framework for studying corruption, including its definitions, causes and rationalization. It discusses the philosophical bases that have been used to justify anti-corruption interventions in international development. The chapter reviews the effects of corruption on various aspects of states' development that have been put forward in the literature. It evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of bilateral and multilateral approaches to combatting corruption, and suggests ways of combining these to increase the effectiveness of anti-corruption efforts. The chapter also reviews the existing trends in the academic literature on international law and development.