• What is the Bribe Payers Index?
• When and where was the survey carried out?
• How is the BPI the "bribery in business sectors" ranking reached?
• Why did TI focus on the bribe-payers in emerging market economies?
• What is the signficance of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions?
• Who funds the TI Bribe Payers Index?
• What can a country do to improve its ranking in the BPI?
• Why does the BPI not rank companies instead of countries?
• Media contacts

What is the Bribe Payers Index?

The Transparency International Bribe Payers Index ranks leading exporting countries in terms of the degree to which international companies with their headquarters in those countries are likely to pay bribes to senior public officials in key emerging market economies. In that sense, it measures the supply side of bribery in the countries where the bribes are paid. Countries are ranked on a mean score from the answers given by respondents to the question "in the business sectors with which you are most familiar, please indicate how likely companies from the following countries are to pay or offer bribes to win or retain business in this country?"

The 21 exporters listed in the BPI 2002 are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, USA, in addition to "this country" (the emerging market economy where the respondent is resident). The survey also included a range of questions on the prevalence of bribery by foreign companies in different sectors, on levels of awareness of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, and company policies to implement the legislation resulting from the Convention. In drawing up the survey, TI was advised and guided by a Steering Committee of leading international experts in the fields of corruption, econometrics, and statistics. The selection of Gallup International Association ensures the highest professional standards in the survey work.

When and where was the survey carried out?

The BPI 2002 was conducted by Gallup International Association in 15 emerging market economies, via a total of 835 interviews. The interviews were conducted with 261 senior executives from foreign companies, 261 senior executives from domestic companies, 84 top executives at chartered accountancies, 71 representatives of binational chambers of commerce, 80 executives from national and foreign commercial banks, and 78 at commercial law firms.

The BPI 2002 survey was carried out between December 2001 and March 2002 in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, and Thailand. These countries account for more than 60% of all foreign direct investment into the developing world. It was not, unfortunately, possible to conduct a survey in China, the largest emerging market economy, due to the difficulties involved in commissioning a survey on this subject in China.

How is the BPI the "bribery in business sectors" ranking reached?

In the BPI 2002, two questions were asked: (a) how likely is it that senior public officials in this country would demand or accept bribes, e.g. for public tenders, regulations, licensing in the following business sectors? (b) among the business sectors mentioned, which are the two sectors where the biggest bribes are likely to be paid?

This second question was introduced in the BPI 2002 to see if there was any difference between frequency and size of bribe-paying. It turned out that public works contracts & construction emerged as the most prevalent sector for bribe payment in terms of both frequency and size of payment. The arms and defence sector emerged as the second most prone to bribery in respondents' answers to both questions.

Why did TI focus on the bribe-payers in emerging market economies?

The BPI survey was conducted exclusively in key emerging market countries because TI's work is focused to a large degree on international corruption affecting developing countries and transition countries. In addition, given the high levels of bribery in these countries, the BPI is conducted using interviews with senior decision-makers resident in countries where the awareness about corruption is the highest, not at the international headquarters.

What is the signficance of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions (Anti-Bribery Convention)?

The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention came into force in February 1999, and by May 2002 it had been ratified by 34 of the 35 signatory countries. These countries account for more than three-quarters of global trade. The Convention outlaws bribery of foreign public officials. The BPI looks directly at bribery by international companies abroad, most of whom have their headquarters in countries whose governments are signatories of the OECD Convention. For the convention to be effective, anti-bribery compliance codes need to be implemented not only in a company's headquarters, but also in its foreign subsidiaries, branches and at local partners of the company. This requires training "in the field" as well as in the country where the company has its headquarters. In 2002, three years after the Convention came into force, only 7% of respondents were familiar with the Convention while 12% stated that they knew something about it. This is the same combined figure as in the first BPI, conducted in 1999. For more information about the OECD Convention, please see: http://www1.oecd.org/daf/nocorruption/ref.htm

Who funds the TI Bribe Payers Index?

Transparency International is funded by governmental agencies, foundations and corporations. To learn more about Transparency International, please visit www.transparency.org.

What can a country do to improve its ranking in the BPI?

As well as passing laws outlawing bribery, the leading exporting countries need to properly enforce those laws. That means providing resources to ensure that investigations and court proceedings will take place. It also means strong educational campaigns to ensure that the corporate sector is aware that bribery is illegal, at home and abroad, and that they introduce anti-corruption compliance codes in all their offices around the world, and provide appropriate training.

Why does the BPI not rank companies instead of countries?

There are more than 60,000 multinational corporations operating around the world with more than 600,000 foreign affiliates. It is almost impossible to measure and rank all these corporations. By asking senior executives to answer questions about companies from particular countries, rather than asking them to name companies, the survey was able to focus on clearly identifiable patterns rather than specific cases.