The role of the private sector is the focus of the first meeting being sponsored by the OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Business people everywhere say they do not want to go to a country where the government looks the other way.
Corruption is a serious economic problem.
But increasingly there is a trend toward intolerance of corruption, helped by the post-cold war opening up of government processes, freer new coverage, and increased independence of the judiciary. A few years ago you could even concoct an average bribe fee list for every single license required by business. Corruption is such a high cost that business people are very explicit about being ready to pay higher taxes to be rid of it. Finance ministers ought to get the message of how much they're losing to corruption and over-regulation. The OECD, which sponsored the international anti-corruption treaty that took effect last week, says the focus must be on both those who pay the bribes and those who take them.