UNU-MERIT Working Papers Series
Remittances and Bribery in Africa
Maty Konte & Gideon Ndubuisi #2019-043This paper examines the effects of remittances on bribe payments to
public officials to access public goods and services in Africa. We argue
that migrant remittances may affect bribery among remittance recipients
through the income and norm channels. Using Afrobarometer surveys
administered in thirty-six African countries between 2004 and 2016, we
find that remittance receivers are more prone to bribe payment than
non-receivers. More importantly, we find that individuals who live in
countries with higher levels of remittances as a share of gross domestic
product (GDP) are more likely to pay bribes than individuals from
countries with lower remittances as a share of GDP, which supports the
income channel. However, the positive link between remittances and
bribery diminishes in countries with a high level of control over
corruption. When looking at the stock of migrants living abroad, we find
that citizens from African countries that record a high stock of
migrants living in OECD countries are less likely to pay bribe than
citizens from African countries with lower level of stock of migrants in
OECD countries. This finding is in line with the norm channel, but more
data are needed for a better understanding of this mechanism.
Keywords: Remittances, Bribery, Africa, SDGs
JEL Classification: F24, O55
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