The Bank has identified corruption as among the greatest obstacles to economic and social development. It undermines development by distorting the rule of law and weakening the institutional foundation on which economic growth depends.
Hundreds of governance and anti-corruption activities take place throughout the World Bank. These activities focus on monitoring staff conduct at the Bank, minimizing corruption in World Bank-funded projects, and helping countries improve their public sector and control corruption. As outlined in the World Bank's strategy on Governance and Anti-Corruption, the Bank will continue to expand efforts in these areas on three fronts: At the country level, the Bank is helping countries build capable, transparent, and accountable institutions and design and implement anti-corruption programs.
In Bank-funded projects, the Bank is minimizing corruption by assessing corruption risk in projects upstream, actively investigating allegations of fraud and corruption, and strengthening project oversight and supervision.
At the global level, the Bank is expanding partnerships with multilateral and bilateral development institutions, civil society, the private sector, and other actors in joint initiatives to address corruption.
We use our Poverty Reduction and Economic Management department, the World Bank Institute, the Legal Department, and Regional Operations to help governments and businesses open up to scrutiny in order to foster trust, credibility and confidence in our operations, increase accountability and put corruption control programs in place. The Office of Ethics and Business Conflict provides advice on internal ethical issues for Bank staff. Last of all, a team of investigators in the Department of Institutional Integrityis in place to uncover those engaged in fraud and corrupt practices in Bank projects and to investigate allegations of possible staff misconduct.
What happens to companies or people who are caught engaging in fraud or corruption with bank money?
The companies or people engaging in fraud or corruption are held accountable for their wrongdoing. The World Bank's Sanctions Board can impose a range of penalties depending on the nature of the incident. The Sanctions Board can issue a letter of reprimand, specifying actions that need to be taken by the party in question to prevent any further incidents. It can bar companies or individuals that engage in fraud and corruption from participating -- either temporarily or permanently -- in any further Bank-backed projects. In addition, the names of individuals or companies found to have committed wrongdoing are published on our website, along with their sanction. To date more than 330 firms and individuals have been added to the List of Debarred Firms. Finally, if the Department of Institutional Integrity substantiates findings of fraud or corruption, we can refer cases to national authorities for prosecution. Referrals to member governments of fraud or corruption have resulted in 26 criminal convictions.
For more information on this topic, see the World Bank Group's Annual Integrity Report, 2005 - 2006.
How do I report possible fraud or corruption within the World Bank or Bank Group-financed projects?
The Department of Institutional Integrity (INT) investigates fraud and corruption allegations about World Bank staff and the projects we fund. There are several ways for Bank staff and the public to contact this department:
Use our hotline (1-800-831-0463) within the US. Outside the US, use the international AT&T operator to access the hotline. Please Note: The hotline is maintained by an outside vendor, is open 24 hours a day/seven days a week, and offers multi-language translation services. Anonymous calls are accepted. Please be as specific as possible. Include at least the basic details of who, what, when and where. Let us know how you can be reached, in case further information is required by investigators.
Mail particularly sensitive information to: PMB 3767 13950 Ballantyne Corporate Place Charlotte, NC, 28277 USA
Corruption is a cancer and no country, rich or poor, is immune-nor is a multilateral development institution. Fraud and corruption have undoubtedly occurred in Bank-funded projects, but it would be nearly impossible to determine how much Bank money might have been lost. Corruption on a world-wide, country-by-country basis has not been measured by anyone, given the difficulties and enormous costs of collecting quantitative data on the subject.
Whatever the amount lost to corruption, even a small percentage is too much, given the dreadful conditions most of the world's population endures. Corruption sabotages policies and programs that aim to reduce poverty, so attacking fraud and corruption vigorously is critical to the achievement of our overarching mission to reduce poverty.
Should individuals and businesses look out for fraudulent investment scams that misuse the World Bank's name?
The World Bank issued a warningin 2004 about an increasing number of investment scams known as Advance Fee Fraud schemes that misuse our name or claim to be affiliated with the World Bank. In several schemes that referenced the Bank, individuals falsely represented themselves to be World Bank auditors or members of the World Bank West African Regional Delegation and sent faxes to creditors of several West African governments, claiming to be empowered by these governments to repay past debts. Often, official-looking World Bank letterhead was used. In some cases, those seeking the funds used the names of actual World Bank staff members to bolster their credibility.
Typically, the solicitations asked potential victims to provide personal information such as signatures or bank account information, and to pay certain advance fees, often described as "processing fees." In return, the potential victim was promised sums of money that the person soliciting the "fees" had no intention of paying. Many of the Advance Fee Fraud schemes originate in Nigeria and are known as "Nigerian scams" or "4-1-9" letters after the section of the Nigerian penal code that deals with this type of fraud. Police estimate that thousands of these solicitations are sent by fax or email every week and are addressed to individuals and companies around the world. Only a very small fraction involves the use of the World Bank's name.
We have no involvement in such schemes, and we caution the public to be wary of these and other similar solicitations that falsely claim to be affiliated with the World Bank. If you have questions about the alleged involvement of any part of the World Bank in a particular transaction, direct your inquiry to the Institutional Integrity Department through the above-listed reporting lines.
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