The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at a historic UN Summit, outlines 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The goals, which are inter-related in their focus on promoting human development, stipulate 169 targets.
Whether countries will succeed or fail in implementing the SDGs is highly dependent on how well countries integrate these goals in national policy interventions. This, in turn, will depend on each country’s own priorities.
Given each country’s unique circumstances, there are no standard recommendations on how the SDGs are to be prioritised or attained. However, mechanisms exist to plan effective policy interventions. The Integrated model for Sustainable Development Goals strategies (iSDG), for instance, allows policy makers and planning officials to design, interpret and test interventions and their likely impact prior to adopting them.
One area that all countries should focus on – not least those in Africa – is reducing corruption. This is essential for curbing the many illicit flows that harm societies at all levels, and arms trafficking in particular.
Corruption robs communities of much-needed resources, while illicit arms destroy lives directly. Bridget Conley, Research Director of the World Peace Foundation, describes the arms trade as having ‘…a number of unique features that enable it to assert a profoundly maligned influence on democracy, transparency, and rule of law in both manufacturing and purchasing countries.’
Efforts to attain the SDGs cannot be separated from the fight against corruption and illicit arms flows – particularly Goal 16. This goal recognises that illicit arms flows, governance and anti-corruption at global, national and sub-national levels pose a major threat to human development.
Corruption facilitates transnational organised crime, including illicit arms trafficking, in direct and multi-faceted ways. According to a Transparency International report from 2013, ‘the global cost of corruption in the defence sector amounts to at least $20bn a year.’ Illegal brokers exploit governance systems weakened by conflict to traffic weapons, and this is exacerbated by corruption.
While a comprehensive evaluation of success in attaining the SDGs is some years away, the 2017 progress report of SDG 16 indicates that in 2015, when the SDGs were adopted, over 18% of firms worldwide reported having received at least one request for a bribery payment. About 25% of these requests were recorded among firms in low- and lower-middle-income countries, compared to only 4% in high-income countries.
In low-income countries, the impact of corruption cuts across all public sectors. Two major, inter-related factors will play a significant role in determining prospects for attaining Goal 16. The first is the strength of a country’s governance structures; and second is the availability and reliability of data.
Most African countries form part of the lower-income category. They also form the bulk of countries that are ranked the lowest on the corruption perceptions index. These countries are therefore likely to be less responsive to Goal 16, unless they receive external technical and financial support.
The UN and the AU are well aware of this challenge, and have worked to adequately identify the effect of corruption on development. For instance, the UN estimates that corruption, bribery, theft and tax evasion cost developing countries approximately US$1.26 trillion per year: an amount that is equivalent to the economies of Switzerland, South Africa and Belgium combined. In the same vein, the AU estimates that 25% of the continent’s gross domestic product (GDP) is lost to corruption.
A coalition of SDG data development experts concurs that the success of these goals is dependent upon strong governance systems.
The effect of corruption is most widespread in low-come countries given its immediate impact on livelihoods and security. It is, however, important to recognise that corruption is not an issue for low-income countries alone, but that its harmful effects also extend to high-income economies.
Corruption is a cancer that robs societies of wellbeing and development. It is a major catalyst in illicit arms exports that link illicit manufacturers and brokers in developed countries with markets in conflict-prone parts of the world. The end effect of corruption is poverty, which in turn exacerbates insecurity. Beyond the SDGs, Africa’s future is at stake.
Nelson Alusala, senior research consultant, ENACT project, ISS
