The World Bank Says That 80% Of Nigerian Businesses Are Corrupt

The World Bank, in an investment assessment report released recently, showed that 80 per cent of businesses in Nigeria offer bribes to government officials, adding also that the country remains the most attractive investment destination in Africa despite the high rate of corruption.

"One-third of micro-enterprises reported that informal payments/gifts to government officials were commonplace, suggesting that registered firms confront more requests for such bribes," the report stated. "Only 20 per cent of micro-enterprise firms reported having advance knowledge of the amount of the payment required to 'get things done'.

"Informal payments/gifts represented approximately 1.2 per cent of annual sales for all micro-enterprises."

The report, which analyzed businesses in 26 states within the country, noted that government contractors have to pay approximately 4.3 per cent of the contract value in order to secure and maintain contracts.

States analyzed include: Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.

"The bribes required to obtain contracts appear much smaller for services (3.9 per cent) than for manufactured goods (6.7 per cent)," the report stated.

"Formal sector firms pay more for corruption: 47 per cent of formal firms claimed that informal gifts/payments were commonplace, compared to 33 per cent of micro-enterprises."