A recent survey of 900 senior executives worldwide found that, out of all regions, companies operating in Latin America saw themselves as most vulnerable to fraud and corruption (72 percent), but Latin America also showed the least investment in means of addressing fraud and corruption.
Why the gap between perceived risk and efforts to address it? What specifically can companies in Latin America do to help minimize such risk?
In this article, 3 experts argue that in order to fight corruption in Latin America, companies can ratchet up internal compliance programs, conduct due diligence on third parties (who also create liability), and train employees on applicable laws.
Another interesting on this topic is Latin America's Corruption Challenge (click here for Spanish language version), written by Susan Ackerman, Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University, and Bjørn Lomborg, the organizer of Copenhagen Consensus.
The authors argue that "corruption alone is not the essential problem. Rather, it symbolizes and highlights underlying weaknesses in the operation of the state and its interactions with citizens and businesses. Some institutions are so vital that they produce either a competent and fair state if they function well or a corrupt, unfair, and ineffective state if they operate poorly. Cleaning up two such institutions – the public sector and the judiciary – should be a priority for many governments in the region."
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