Politics and Corruption in Africa

Sierra Leone has long endured a pattern of corruption remarkable in its depth and extent. The ubiquity of corruption in both the business and public sectors contributed to the country's dubious reputation of being named the poorest in the world by the United Nations Development Programme estimates in 1991. In this acute case study, Kpundeh asserts that the lack of accountability in Sierra Leone has long been responsible for the gross misuse of public funds for private gain. Supported by extensive interviewing and data collection, the author demonstrates that corruption has long been used by the governing elite as a vehicle to attain economic domination. Kpundeh offers that the key to successfully controlling corruption is to have a democratic system that guarantees the rights of individuals and provides the framework to deal with the problems of accountability and transparency.