Balkan survey, Serbia and Albania with the highest levels of corruption

Citizens of Serbia and Albania perceive a higher level of corruption in their countries, compared to the other 4 countries of the Western Balkans, announces a Survey of the Council of Regional Cooperation conducted this summer as part of the Security Barometer .

"One of the complicating factors affecting the levels of dissatisfaction with the general economic situation in the region is related to the high levels of perceived corruption. The vast majority of respondents (86%) believe that corruption is somewhat or very widespread, with Serbia ranking first (90%) followed by Albania (87%)," states the Report accompanying the Barometer Survey.

The fact remains that one in two respondents in general in the region sees corruption deeply rooted in the economies (reporting that the phenomenon is very widespread).

Regional Cooperation Council analysts report that responses to questions about corruption give a pessimistic picture of widespread corruption. Respondents have acknowledged that corrupt practices, small and large, are a normal part of life in the economies of the WB region and that the response to corruption is inefficient and insufficient.

The belief in corruption is so strong, as it fosters perceptions that it is often the only way to obtain public services.

The resilience of democratic systems to withstand instability depends to a great extent on the absence of corruption and nepotism in the public sector. State capture is an absolute obstacle to democratic development, says the analysis of the survey results.

Now corruption in the Balkans, but especially in Albania, is defined as systematic political corruption, in which politicians use their control over an economy and develop decision-making processes to their advantage. Consequently, even though the European integration of the Western Balkan Region has continued for more than two decades, corruption still permeates all spheres and societies of the region.

In its Enlargement Strategy, the European Commission acknowledged the lack of progress among the current EU candidate economies underlining the existing problem of state capture at all levels of government and administration.

Worryingly, the anti-corruption progress made in the Western Balkans between 2000 and 2010 has now faded and public enthusiasm has declined.

The European Commission's 2022 progress reports for the economies of the Western Balkans pointed out some new shortcomings when it comes to the fight against corruption. According to reports, all economies in the region suffer from high-level corruption, where the main problem is the low number of convictions./monitor