Fighting African corruption when existing corruption-control levels matter in a dynamic cultural setting

Simplice Asongu

International Journal of Social Economics, 2014, vol. 41, issue 10, 906-922

Abstract: Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to assess the determinants of corruption-control (CC) with freedom dynamics (economic, political, press and trade), government quality (GQ) and a plethora of socio-economic factors in 46 African countries using updated data. Design/methodology/approach - – A quantile regression approach is employed while controlling for the unobserved heterogeneity. Principal component analysis is also used to reduce the dimensions of highly correlated variables. Findings - – With the legal origin fundamental characteristic, the following findings have been established. First, while political freedom increases CC in a bottom quantile of English common-law countries, there is no such evidence in their French civil-law counterparts. Second, GQ consistently improves CC across all quantiles in English common-law countries but fails to exert the same effect in middle quantiles of French civil-law countries. Third, economic freedom ameliorates CC only in common-law countries with low existing CC levels (bottom quantiles). Fourth, The authors find no significant evidence of a positive “press freedom”-CC nexus and having the status of low-income English common-law (French civil law) countries decreases (increases) CC. From a religious domination scenario, the authors also find the following. First, political and trade freedoms only reduce CC in Christian-dominated countries while press freedom has a mitigation effect in both religious cultures (though more consistent across quantiles of Christian-oriented countries). Second, GQ is more pro-CC in Christian than in Muslim-dominated countries. Third, while economic freedom has a scanty negative nexus with CC in Christian-oriented countries, the effect is positive in their Muslim-dominated counterparts. Fourth, having a low-income status in countries with Christian common-law tradition improves CC. Originality/value - – The authors complement the literature on the fight against corruption in Africa by employing recently documented additional factors that should be considered in corruption studies.

Keywords: Freedom; Africa; Corruption; Quantile regression; Government quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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Working Paper: Fighting African corruption when existing corruption-control levels matter in a dynamic cultural setting (2013)
Working Paper: Fighting African corruption when existing corruption-control levels matter in a dynamic cultural setting (2013)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:ijsepp:v:41:y:2014:i:10:p:906-922

DOI: 10.1108/IJSE-05-2013-0117

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