Corruption Brief Series: Lessons from Guatemala

I am pleased to share the latest report in the Corruption Brief series from the Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy program at the Council on Foreign Relations. In this report, I focus on the case of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (better known by its Spanish acronym CICIG). In partnership with its Guatemalan counterparts, CICIG has successfully prosecuted senior government officials and achieved important reforms of the legal system. CICIG can be a model for other countries facing the challenge of deep-seated corruption and impunity, but donors must pay attention to ensuring that future CICIG-like bodies are politically independent, adequately funded, and assigned top priority within donors’ broader foreign policy and aid objectives. You can read the report here.