Corruption is a global problem. In most cases, it is associated with developing countries for convenience. It would be fraudulent for me to represent the developing world against corruption charges. But the story is never complete when we only refer to a developing country like Ghana or Nigeria as corrupt. That means we are only looking at one side of the coin. Multinational corporations (MNCs) with roots in the developed world play a fundamental role in the procreation of this disease in the developing world.

Large Western companies have the resources to hire experts who can deal with the bureaucratic hurdles normally characteristic of most African countries and the dark rules of the game.

I know the situation in most African countries. Local entrepreneurs fight and give up to obtain land and other licenses to start operating businesses, while international corporations can work on the system overnight and be in business the next morning. They have the means to “grease” the administrative machinery and accelerate lengthy decision-making processes.

These corporations are not only infecting our system with the disease we have been fighting for decades, in fact some of them are directly or indirectly responsible for civil unrest and wars.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), nearly five million people are estimated to have died in wars, the main driver of which is the satisfaction of Western economies and the insatiable desire of people for high-quality jewelry and precious minerals such as gold. Diamond . Where do the rebels get their weapons from? They are surely not manufactured locally.

The educated elite of Africa benefits from this servitude. This has turned into a war of attrition. The system of corruption propagated by multinationals in collaboration with African politicians has turned into a kind of civil war in which the man or woman in the street cannot distinguish between a friend and an enemy. They know that these corporations and their local leaders are making fortunes, but they don’t see any of the benefits in their daily lives. Gold and diamonds from Ghana, diamonds from the Democratic Republic of Congo, oil from Nigeria, cocoa from Ivory Coast and the list goes on, but a can of milk is a luxury for most families.

It is easy for richer countries to attribute African development problems to the corruption of African leaders. That doesn’t tell the whole story. To comprehensively and honestly address the problem of corruption in Africa, we must address the role that multinational corporations play in business. Western governments should address this problem because it is an open secret. Western media must do a better job covering corporations operating in Africa.

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