Corruption is a global problem. In most cases, it is associated with developing countries out of convenience. It would be fraudulent of me to represent the developing world against charges of corruption. 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 major role in breeding 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 murky 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 businesses, while international corporations can get around the system overnight and be in business the next morning. They have the means to “oil” the administrative machinery and speed up long 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), it is estimated that almost five million people have died in wars, whose main drive is the satisfaction of Western economies and the insatiable desire of the people for high-quality jewelry and precious minerals such as gold. Diamond. . Where do the rebels get their weapons? Surely they are not locally made.

The educated elite in Africa benefit from this servitude. This has become a war of attrition. The system of corruption propagated by multinationals in collaboration with African politicians has become 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 the Congo, oil from Nigeria, cocoa from the 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 Africa’s 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 confront the role that multinational corporations play in the business. Western governments should address this problem because it is an open secret. Western media needs to do a better job of covering corporations doing business in Africa.

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