Corruption and US D&G programs

Transparency International has just released it’s 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index.  When looking at the index, what immediately struck me was how much the US Government concentrates its democracy and governance funding in the most corrupt countries in the world.  The five most corrupt countries (starting with the most corrupt) are Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan, and Iraq. According to Freedom House, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Sudan had the three largest US D&G programs in 2009, accounting for approximately one-half of total US Government D&G programs.  I am not arguing that the US Government is funding corruption in these countries (although this recent New York Times article on Blackwater’s bribes to the Iraqi Government made me wince). Rather, my point is that worthwhile as these programs may be, they are unlikely to be effective as I described in a recent post.