Corruption as Risk and Integrity as Risk Management: Potential and Challenges of Risk Approach for Corruption Prevention

Anti-corruption principles and recommendations have been disseminated, sometimes as “specific prescriptions,” sometimes as part of state reform agendas and standards for strengthening “good governance.” The discourse and standards of integrity have emerged in this context, representing both a set of representations and values and a group of recommendations focused on curb corruption. Although there is still little debate on the differences between corruption and lack of integrity, there are efforts to adopt approaches and methodologies to articulate these two concepts and to design and implement anti-corruption measures. Currently, the risk approach has risen as one of the most recommended approaches for analyzing corruption and designing integrity systems. What are the implications of analyzing corruption encapsulated in the concept of risk? What attributes, causal elements and conditionalities of this phenomenon and its practices are considered and disregarded? Does integrity, in turn, comprise risk management? What is the impact of thinking of integrity systems based on risk management frameworks? This proposal is driven by these issues and begins by exploring the most influential international recommendations on analyzing corruption and designing integrity systems. Then, it examines the literature on risks and risk management and the possibilities and limits of this approach. The conclusion seeks to discuss the potential and challenges of the risk approach for corruption prevention.