Transparency International in a recent report said Zimbabwe loses about 1 billion US dollars in revenue every year mostly because of government officials who engage in corruption. The report which was released on Tuesday indicates that the resulting institutionalization and systematization of corruption in Zimbabwean political and economic spheres has been extensive.
Social media groups like #ThisFlag and #Tajamuka have cited corruption in President Robert Mugabe’s government and police roadblocks where money is taken from motorists as among the main reasons for protests that have rocked the southern African nation in the last few months.
“The idea behind it is to quantify and qualitatively analyse the causes of corruption in our society as Zimbabweans and hopefully also offer recommendations of how to tackle corruption as it affects different members of society and different sectors of society” Mary Jane Ncube, Executive Director at Transparency International Zimbabwe.
Critics and the opposition have accused Mugabe of failing to tackle high-level graft, saying endemic corruption is one reason foreign companies are hesitant to invest in the country.
The southern African country was last year ranked 150th out of 168 countries on the Transparency International index, which measures public perceptions of corruption in public institutions. Read the rest here.