How is Political Corruption (Nepotism, Collusion and Embezzlement) affecting the Economic Development of Guinea?

Guinea is a poor West African country that possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources. It’s terribly ironic how Guinea struggles to bring back it’s economy back from the brink even though it has almost half of the world's bauxite reserves and significant iron ore, gold, and diamond reserves. However, Guinea has been unable to profit from this potential, as rampant corruption, dilapidated infrastructure, and political uncertainty have drained investor confidence. A small number of offshore companies, aided and abetted by corrupt domestic regimes, bled Guinea’s resources for decades. The country has suffered a slow death, facilitated by the network of lawyers, accountants and financial advisers sitting in offices in MEDC countries. The biggest threats to Guinea’s economy are political instability and low international commodity prices. Some of the most serious human right problems in Guinea include security force killings and use of excessive force against demonstrators, arbitrary arrest and detention, including long periods of pretrial detention and denial of fair trials, life-threatening prison and detention center conditions, resulting in deaths and corruption at all levels of government and impunity. The government took minimal steps to prosecute or punish officials who committed abuses during the year or in years past.

Guinea is among the 5 most corrupt nations in Africa and then top ten in the world according to 2006 ranking by Transparency International and Guinea’s deteriorating reputation for corruption can seriously affect the economic development of Guinea-- threatening city services, choking economic growth and increasing drug trafficking. Guinea’s low rank is because of the infamous disruptive na...

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...siness contracts predominantly lack transparency. A poll conducted by Stat View International and Afrobarometer has found that 57 percent of the respondents reported paying a bribe with the past twelve months. Another survey by the ANLC, OSIWA and TI have found that among Guinea’s private households and overwhelming majority of the population have been forced to pay bribes to receive help with basic necessities; 61 percent of the respondents have said that they were asked to pay a bribe for national services, 24 percent for local services, 24 percent also claimed to pay traffic-related bribes to the police, 24 percent for better medical treatment, 19 percent for better electricity and water services and 8 percent for judicial treatment of higher quality. Anecdotal evidence also suggest that business men are often asked to pay for meetings with government officials