Polycentric Governance as a Means to Limit Corruption

Abstract

"In September 1996, the president of the World Bank, James D Wolfensohn, committed the Bank to 'fight the cancer of corruption'. This drive helped catalyze a global response to the problem of corruption, which is endemic in many countries. Since Wolfensohn’s announcement, the literature on corruption has mushroomed. This literature covers many aspects of the phenomenon, such as its nature, its costs and benefits, its optimal quantity and the possible means of limiting corruption. Numerous anticorruption measures are mentioned and discussed, from writing anticorruption laws and establishing anticorruption units to revamping systems of governance. In respect of the latter, some attention has been paid to the transformation of totalitarian to democratic systems to governance. However, as far as could be established, little attention has been paid to different kinds of democracy and, in particular, polycentric versus unicentric democratic governance as a means of limiting corruption. This paper aims to stimulate discussion on the latter topic."