Approaches for curbing corruption in emerging economies

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Abstract

International trends suggest that corruption is prevalent in every country (Enste & Heldman, 2017). For instance, Sohail, Arslan and Zaman (2014) contended that corruption is increasingly having negative implications for governments and organisations worldwide. Therefore, this study explores the approaches for curbing corruption in emerging economies. An exploratory research design was conducted. The qualitative research method was adopted to investigate the subject matter. Interviews were conducted among 12 participants in the selected municipalities located in KwaZulu-Natal. Data quality was determined through trustworthiness. The data was analysed using NVivo, version 12.0. Thematic analysis was conducted to observe, organise, describe, and report the patterns obtained from the data set. The overall findings identified key approaches to curbing corruption in the KwaZulu-Natal municipalities, including resource availability, anti-corruption agencies, community involvement and participation, legal frameworks, non-political interference, and accountability. The study provides adequate explanations of the approaches to curbing corruption in emerging economies. The study will help South African public organisations to detect different forms of corruption and take appropriate measures to mitigate them. The study will help accountability, transparency, and good governance in the South African public sector.

Keywords: Accountability, Anti-Corruption Agencies, Corruption, Legal Frameworks, Non-Political Interference

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization — E.M.; Investigation — S.L.N.; Writing — Original Draft — S.L.N.; Writing — Review & Editing — E.M.; Funding Acquisition — E.M.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgements: The approval (HSSRC/00000986/2020) for this study was obtained from the Humanities Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

JEL Classification: H7

Received: 30.12.2021
Accepted: 02.12.2022
Published online: 07.12.2022

How to cite this paper: Ndlovu, S. L., & Mutambara, E. (2022). Approaches for curbing corruption in emerging economies [Special issue]. Corporate Governance and Organizational Behavior Review, 6(4), 253–264. https://doi.org/10.22495/cgobrv6i4sip6