Sarah Chayes on Corruption

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In The Media

Sarah Chayes on Corruption

Day-to-day corruption is not only detrimental to a country’s economy, but can also make people angry and more sympathetic to violent extremism.

By Sarah Chayes

Published on Feb 25, 2015

Source: Voice of America

Carol Castiel and VOA corruption correspondent Jeffrey Young spoke with Carnegie’s Sarah Chayes about her new book Thieves of State. Chayes explained how corruption is an under-recognized driver of extreme behavior, and how Western officials fail to understand how personally humiliating corruption is in countries like Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Ukraine. Corruption that people face every single day is not only detrimental to a country’s economy, but is also wounding to a person’s dignity—it makes people angry, and can at times lead to violent extremism, she warned.

This interview was originally broadcast on Voice of America.

About the Author

Sarah Chayes

Former Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Sarah Chayes is internationally recognized for her innovative thinking on corruption and its implications. Her work explores how severe corruption can help prompt such crises as terrorism, revolutions and their violent aftermaths, and environmental degradation.

Recent Work

Commentary
China Financial Markets test
- Sarah Chayes
Paper
Fighting the Hydra: Lessons From Worldwide Protests Against Corruption
- Sarah Chayes

Security Democracy North America United States Middle East North Africa Southern, Eastern, and Western Africa South Asia Egypt Gulf Levant Maghreb

Carnegie India does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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