The role of corruption in international transactions: A supply side approach

Corruption is regarded as a major obstacle to international trade and investments, and appears to be a threat to economic growth in developing countries. During the 1990s the problem has become a focus of attention in international organisations and resea rch. However, attention has so far focused mainly on the demand side of corruption, and the problem has been associated with countries exhibiting high levels of corruption. In the project the focus will rather be on the supply side of corruption, i.e., pr ivate companies that bribe public officials in foreign countries. Under which circumstances is bribing used to obtain contracts? What are the effects of corruption on economic activity? What can be done to reduce corruption in public procurement of goods and services? The understanding of these issues is still limited, and the project aims at making a contribution to our knowledge within this area. The theoretical work in this research will be derived from economic theory of corruption, foreign direct in vestments, auctions and contracts. The empirical work will partly be based on existing survey data, and partly on a survey of Scandinavian companies.