AD48: Tanzanians perceive ineffective fight against corruption, say citizens have a role to play

Some of the key findings:

• Two-thirds (66%) of Tanzanians say the level of corruption increased between 2013 and 2014. The extent of corruption is perceived to be greatest among the police, tax officials, and judges and magistrates.
• Majorities of citizens in 2012 and 2014 rated the government’s performance in handling the fight against corruption as “fairly bad” or “very bad.” However, there is a slight improvement (8 percentage points) in 2014 compared to 2012.
• Citizens’ experiences with front-line service delivery agents show that corruption is perceived to be more pervasive when accessing police and court services compared to other public services.
• A majority (55%) say that ordinary people can make a difference in the fight against corruption. Citizens cite refusing to pay a bribe (mentioned by 39% of respondents) and reporting corruption (19%) as the most effective things ordinary citizens can do to help fight corruption.
• Eight out of 10 persons (82%) who were compelled to pay a bribe in order to access a public service did not report the incidents to the authorities. As for the main reasons for not reporting, respondents cite fear, ignorance about reporting procedures, and perceived government apathy in dealing with corruption reports.