The main findings

Sectors mostly touched by corruption

Security and judiciary institutions, along with municipalities, are still perceived as the most corrupt institutions, as was the case in 2007. The major services provided by these institutions were implicated in the highest number of bribes paid by households in 2009. Each affected close to 10% of the households surveyed. However, corruption is now increasingly spreading to social public services such as health and education, in which the average amounts of the bribes have often been higher. Each affects close to 5% of households, with the value of the bribes at twice the value of the bribes paid to security and judiciary institutions.

Justice and Police

25% and 26% of households felt deprived of access to the provision of justice and security, respectively, by these institutions due to corruption. Corruption also disappointed those seeking justice from the state. 62% of those households that had experienced corruption within the courts were mainly witnesses and plaintiffs. Furthermore, a significant number of the households that had to pay bribes for such services were poor households with low incomes. Finally, when households faced corruption in both institutions, the amounts of the bribes more than doubled.

The survey shows that the corruption in the public sector erodes the legitimacy of the state in various ways. Corruption in the judiciary is distancing the citizens from the state. 50% of the households that were unable to resolve their legal matters within the judiciary due to corruption turned for assistance to non-state actors such as local shuras (consultative councils or similar advisory bodies), mullahs (religious leaders learned in theology and sacred law) and local commanders.

The survey also shows that, within the judiciary, corruption occurs most frequently at district courts and the offices of attorneys, with 39% of total cases. The households that experienced the most corruption by the police were located in remote villages. The performance of these institutions at the subnational level should therefore be the focus of anti-corruption policies.

Land

The corruption in services related to the administration of land affecting 15% of households has a similar impact on perceptions of state legitimacy. This type of corruption affects 15% of Afghan households and is mostly dominant in remote villages (75%). The majority of households (60%) that faced corruption related to the administration of land turned to non-state actors for resolution, indicating the weakening of the state’s legitimacy.