LocationsTechnology and innovation present opportunities
Harnessing data to improve corruption measurement
December 9, 2025
A lack of financial integrity leads to a severe drain on development financing and drives mistrust and inequality.
Photo: AdobeStock
Each year, US$2 trillion is stolen, laundered, and hidden from governments and communities around the world.
Weak governance leads to a lack of financial integrity, breeding corruption, illicit financial flows, money laundering, embezzlement and tax abuses. A lack of financial integrity leads to a severe drain on development financing and drives mistrust and inequality.
The vast size of public procurement, representing roughly one-third of government spending worldwide, makes it a widely recognized target for corruption. While difficult to measure, estimates suggest between 10 to 25 percent of any government contract’s value may be lost to corruption, according to the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime.
Financing for sustainable development and the quality of governance systems are deeply interconnected. Annually $4 trillion in resources are needed to address the financing crisis, which demands changes to national and global governance systems including effective measures to prevent and combat corruption.
The uses of data
Corruption remains one of the hardest challenges to measure because it is hidden, adaptive and difficult to capture accurately.
Without data, corruption remains anecdotal; with data, it becomes measurable.
Harnessing data to improve corruption measurement means using high-quality, diverse, and objectively analyzed data to reveal where corruption happens, how often, who is affected and how anti-corruption reforms are making a difference.
Reliable, objective and actionable data transforms corruption from an invisible risk into a measurable governance issue, allowing governments, civil society and development partners to design solutions based on evidence.
Countries that collect, analyze, and share data are better equipped to design effective reforms, build public trust and strengthen governance.
Technology and information
Technology opens opportunities in all major areas of development, but only if applied correctly. It must be deployed to produce objective, accurate and reliable results, while also upholding ethics and addressing challenges such as the digital divide.
New data-driven research, conducted by UNDP in partnership with the Government Transparency Institute (GTI), reveals that strengthening integrity in public procurement could unlock much needed resources for development.
Moreover, greater integrity and transparency can influence other important performance metrics such as value for money, internal efficiency, and service delivery.
It analyses over 70 million public procurement contracts in 51 countries from 2017 to 2024, revealing major integrity risks, which often end to be linked with persistent corruption.
UNDP has been a strategic partner of the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine providing support to develop effective mechanisms for transparency and accountability in the reconstruction process.
Photo: UNDP Ukraine/Andriy Sydoruk
Integrity trends
Analysis shows little to no improvement in corruption risk indicators over eight years in 51 countries, with single-bid contracts and non-open procedures in about 30 percent of cases. Only two countries showed significant improvements, while three went backwards.
Construction represents the largest procurement market with the lowest corruption risk, whereas healthcare shows higher risks. Countries with higher Human Development Index scores tend to have less corruption.
UNDP initiatives to tackle corruption
Through our global network of more than 170 countries, UNDP supports country-level governance ecosystems including anti-corruption measurement systems to enable evidence-based reforms and advance the progress of Sustainable Development Goal 16 – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.
In December 2023, UNDP launched a New Global Initiative for Measuring Corruption with support from Saudi Arabia’s Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority, Nazaha, to develop new corruption and anti-corruption indicators, including indicators to measure integrity risks in public procurement.
Funded by the EU, the Papua New Guinea’s Anti-Corruption Project has helped pass whistleblower and access to information laws. Local citizens can use an app to anonymously report environmental incidents like illegal logging.
UNDP has also been training court officers on human rights and anti-corruption, to develop a deeper understanding of the harm caused by corruption.
In Montenegro, UNDP has developed a report to measure whether anti-corruption measures are succeeding.
UNDP also assessed anti-corruption measures in the judiciary and prosecution systems, As part of e-governance reform, UNDP supported digital transformation in local governments, improving transparency and citizen access.
FairBiz is building business and public sector integrity in Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam. Its aim is to minimize corruption in procurement, and promote responsible business practices and build data-driven evaluation system.
Capacity-building initiatives like Tax Inspectors Without Borders are helpful in addressing tax abuses, supported by OECD and UNDP.
And the Integrated National Financing Frameworks (INFF) spell out how the national strategy will be financed and implemented, relying on the full range of public and private financing sources. With support from UNDP, Solomon Islands government has developed its Integrated Financing Framework, which will also play an important role in supporting the smooth transition process for its graduation from Least Developed Country status.
UNDP has a well-established global procurement and supply division with long term agreements with suppliers to negotiate quality medicines at competitive prices. As the Principal Recipient of Global Fund HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria grants, which include a focus on building resilient and sustainable systems for health, UNDP ensures all products it buys meet strict quality assurance guidelines.
Sierra Leone's Anti-Corruption Commissioner, Francis Ben Kaifala (right) discussing stronger whistleblower protection and new prevention programmes with UNDP Resident Representative, Fredrick Hans Ampiah (second from right).
Photo: UNDP Sierra Leone
Weak governance = corruption
Corruption is a consequence of weak governance which thrives in conditions where transparency and accountability are insufficient and where public decision making is compromised by conflicts of interest and political interference.
Corruption is also a massive theft of the birthrights of future generations.
With 1.9 billion young people in the world, fighting corruption is vital for nearly a quarter of the global population.
The campaign for International Anti-Corruption Day focuses on the role young guardians of integrity play as advocates, raising awareness about corruption and its effects on their communities.
UNDP initiatives has been instrumental in supporting the Government of Iraq in creating a legislative framework that fosters anti-corruption and boosts foreign investment.
Photo: UNDP Iraq
