[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":1787},["ShallowReactive",2],{"topics-index":3,"topic-stories-prevention-research-and-innovation-1":109,"topic-events-prevention-research-and-innovation-1":111,"topic-publications-prevention-research-and-innovation-1":260,"topic-news-prevention-research-and-innovation-1":1192,"topic-links":1780},[4,14,27,32,41,49,61,70,76,80,86,92,99,105],{"slug":5,"name":6,"label":6,"parent":7,"total":8,"stories":9,"storyIds":10,"news":11,"publications":12,"events":13},"anti-money-laundering","Anti-Money Laundering",null,246,0,[],152,73,21,{"slug":15,"name":16,"label":16,"parent":7,"total":17,"stories":18,"storyIds":19,"news":24,"publications":25,"events":26},"asset-recovery-and-enforcement","Asset Recovery and Enforcement",677,5,[20,18,21,22,23],4,7,8,10,475,143,54,{"slug":28,"name":29,"label":29,"parent":7,"total":30,"stories":9,"storyIds":31,"news":30,"publications":9,"events":9},"basel-aml-index","Basel AML Index",37,[],{"slug":33,"name":34,"label":35,"parent":7,"total":36,"stories":9,"storyIds":37,"news":38,"publications":39,"events":40},"business-integrity-ethics-and-compliance","Business Integrity Ethics and Compliance","Business Integrity, Ethics and Compliance",443,[],324,85,34,{"slug":42,"name":43,"label":43,"parent":7,"total":44,"stories":9,"storyIds":45,"news":46,"publications":47,"events":48},"collective-action","Collective Action",568,[],265,287,16,{"slug":50,"name":51,"label":51,"parent":7,"total":52,"stories":53,"storyIds":54,"news":58,"publications":59,"events":60},"corruption-prevention-and-public-governance","Corruption Prevention and Public Governance",127,3,[55,56,57],6,9,11,12,110,2,{"slug":62,"name":63,"label":63,"parent":7,"total":64,"stories":65,"storyIds":66,"news":67,"publications":68,"events":69},"green-corruption","Green Corruption",235,1,[23],115,62,57,{"slug":71,"name":72,"label":72,"parent":43,"total":73,"stories":9,"storyIds":74,"news":75,"publications":58,"events":9},"hlrm","HLRM",36,[],24,{"slug":77,"name":78,"label":78,"parent":43,"total":48,"stories":9,"storyIds":79,"news":56,"publications":21,"events":9},"human-rights","Human rights",[],{"slug":81,"name":82,"label":82,"parent":43,"total":83,"stories":9,"storyIds":84,"news":23,"publications":85,"events":9},"integrity-pacts","Integrity Pacts",48,[],38,{"slug":87,"name":88,"label":88,"parent":7,"total":89,"stories":65,"storyIds":90,"news":91,"publications":9,"events":9},"learning-and-training","Learning and training",225,[20],224,{"slug":93,"name":94,"label":95,"parent":7,"total":96,"stories":9,"storyIds":97,"news":98,"publications":13,"events":56},"prevention-research-and-innovation","Prevention Research and Innovation","Prevention, Research and Innovation",155,[],125,{"slug":100,"name":101,"label":101,"parent":7,"total":12,"stories":65,"storyIds":102,"news":103,"publications":104,"events":53},"public-finance-management","Public Finance Management",[58],47,22,{"slug":106,"name":107,"label":107,"parent":7,"total":58,"stories":65,"storyIds":108,"news":18,"publications":55,"events":9},"ukraine","Ukraine",[55],{"items":110,"total":9},[],{"items":112,"total":56},[113,147,182,213,235],{"id":114,"title":115,"body":116,"date_start":117,"date_end":118,"organiser":119,"type":120,"topics":121,"nid":122,"links":123,"slug":130,"summary":7,"time":7,"location":131,"registration_link":7,"registration_link_text":7,"status":132,"image":133,"tags":145,"countries":146},267,"Certificate of Advanced Studies: Mastering Today's Anti-Corruption Challenges","\u003Cp>Corruption and financial crime undermine societies, from stalling economic growth to eroding public trust. Understanding their dynamics and how to fight them effectively is vital for professionals from any sector and corner of the world. \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Cp>This certificate programme with the University of Basel is designed to boost the knowledge, skills and careers of professionals who care about countering corruption. \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Cp>During the six-month course, you'll develop a holistic understanding of how corruption impacts governance at every level. You'll also equip yourself with the skills, tools and approaches to promote anti-corruption and integrity in your daily work. \u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Ch3>At a glance\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\n\u003Cul>\n\t\u003Cli>Start: 28 September 2026\u003C\u002Fli>\n\t\u003Cli>Duration: Six months (Sep 2026–Apr 2027)\u003C\u002Fli>\n\t\u003Cli>Effort: 300 hours (11–12 hours\u002Fweek)\u003C\u002Fli>\n\t\u003Cli>Qualification: Certificate of Advanced Studies of the University of Basel (10 ECTS credits)\u003C\u002Fli>\n\t\u003Cli>Delivery: Live online sessions; 2 in-person events in Basel (hybrid); interactive learning material\u003C\u002Fli>\n\t\u003Cli>Tuition fee: CHF 5,600\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>","2026-09-28","2027-04-04","Basel Institute on Governance | University of Basel","Course",[94],2854,[124,127],{"url":125,"caption":126},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fstudy\u002Fcas-anticorruption","See course info and apply",{"url":128,"caption":129},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fplaylist?list=PLYRnhpCcnLP_ugdEWuDdGmzgX-E7n5IdE","See recordings from info session","certificate-of-advanced-studies-mastering-today-s-anti-corruption-challenges-2854","Online","published",{"id":134,"storage":135,"filename_disk":136,"filename_download":137,"title":138,"type":139,"created_on":140,"modified_on":140,"charset":7,"filesize":141,"width":142,"height":143,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":144,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":140},"f3df05b8-c7ff-4927-a94b-3f695181f621","local","f3df05b8-c7ff-4927-a94b-3f695181f621.jpg","CAS 1 image_smaller.jpg","CAS 1 image Claudia left","image\u002Fjpeg","2026-05-03T21:47:13.000Z",1960044,4359,2497,{},[],[],{"id":148,"title":149,"body":150,"date_start":151,"date_end":151,"organiser":152,"type":153,"topics":154,"nid":155,"links":156,"slug":168,"summary":7,"time":169,"location":131,"registration_link":158,"registration_link_text":7,"status":132,"image":170,"tags":180,"countries":181},319,"Info session: CAS Mastering Today's Anti-Corruption Challenges","\u003Cp>Interested in advancing your expertise in anti-corruption?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Cp>Join our online information session to discover how our Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) programme, \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fstudy\u002Fcas-anticorruption\">Mastering Today's Anti-Corruption Challenges\u003C\u002Fa>, can help you strengthen your skills, expand your professional network and take the next step in your career.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Cp>Led by the programme team and a recent graduate, the session will provide an inside look at the curriculum, learning experience and practical benefits of the programme. You'll also learn about the application process, scholarship opportunities and have plenty of time to ask questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\u003Cp>Whether you work in the public sector, international development, law enforcement, compliance, civil society or academia, this session will help you decide if the programme is the right fit for your professional goals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n### Speakers\n\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout-us\u002Fpeople\u002Fdr-claudia-baez-camargo\">Dr Claudia Baez Camargo\u003C\u002Fa>, Lead Instructor \u002F Director, Prevention, Research and Innovation\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout-us\u002Fpeople\u002Fanna-peyre\">Anna Peyre\u003C\u002Fa>, Study Programme Assistant\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout-us\u002Fpeople\u002Fdr-jorg-schmidt\">Dr Jörg Schmidt\u003C\u002Fa>, Study Programme Manager\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Tamara Tschentscher, CAS Graduate \u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\n### Details\n\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>17 June 2026\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>13:00–14:00 CEST\u003C\u002Fli>\n  \u003Cli>Online\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.zoom.us\u002Fwebinar\u002Fregister\u002FWN_jeq0siywRmGftOSocvcecA#\u002Fregistration\">Registration\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\n### Agenda\n\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Welcome and introduction to \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fstudy\">Basel STUDY\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>CAS Mastering Today's Anti-Corruption Challenges: structure, content and learning outcomes\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Hear from a recent graduate\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>The application process\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>The Gretta Fenner Scholarship Fund  \u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Q&A\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>","2026-06-17","Basel Institute on Governance","Event",[94],2978,[157,160,163,166],{"url":158,"caption":159},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.zoom.us\u002Fwebinar\u002Fregister\u002FWN_jeq0siywRmGftOSocvcecA#\u002Fregistration","Register to the info session",{"url":161,"caption":162},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2025-11\u002FCAS%20Anti-Corruption.pdf","Programme flyer",{"url":164,"caption":165},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fform\u002Fbasel-study-application-form","Application form",{"url":125,"caption":167},"All about the CAS Mastering Today's Anti-Corruption Challenges","info-session-cas-mastering-todays-anti-corruption-challenges-2978","13:00 - 14:00 CEST",{"id":171,"storage":135,"filename_disk":172,"filename_download":173,"title":149,"type":174,"created_on":175,"modified_on":175,"charset":7,"filesize":176,"width":177,"height":178,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":179,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":175},"a5fde82b-bfbd-455f-b8f5-e8f04a2d0782","a5fde82b-bfbd-455f-b8f5-e8f04a2d0782.webp","tmp.webp","image\u002Fwebp","2026-06-04T21:19:08.000Z",22734,800,418,{},[],[],{"id":183,"title":184,"body":185,"date_start":186,"date_end":187,"organiser":188,"type":153,"topics":189,"nid":190,"links":191,"slug":204,"summary":7,"time":7,"location":7,"registration_link":7,"registration_link_text":7,"status":132,"image":205,"tags":211,"countries":212},207,"CoSP 10: Conference of the States Parties to the UNCAC","A Basel Institute delegation is at the 10th Conference of the States Parties (CoSP) to the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) this year. CoSP10 takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, USA from 11–15 December 2023.\n\nCome and find us at our info booth on the third floor, where we'll have staff to answer your questions and free publications and tote bags to take away.\n\nWe are involved in several special events, including those below. The agenda is still being firmed up – check back or follow us on \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.linkedin.com\u002Fcompany\u002Fbasel-institute\">LinkedIn\u003C\u002Fa>, \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Ftwitter.com\u002FBaselInstitute\">Twitter\u003C\u002Fa> or \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.facebook.com\u002Fbaselinstituteongovernance\">Facebook\u003C\u002Fa> for updates. \n\n#### Monday 11 December, 14:00: Special Event on Combating Corruption to Protect the Environment\n\nGretta Fenner, Managing Director, moderated this high-level event on environmental corruption featuring:\n\n\n- Taneti Maamau, President of Kiribati\n- Dominique Hasler, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education and Sport, Liechtenstein\n- Yvonne Dausab, Minister of Justice, Namibia\n- Maggie Nardi, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, INL Bureau, U.S. Department of State\n- Ghada Waly, Executive Director, UNODC\n- Francine Pickup, Deputy Assistant Administrator, UNDP\n- Paula Francisco Coelho, Secretary of State for Climate Change and Sustainable Development, Angola \n\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F2537\">Learn more\u003C\u002Fa> | \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fwatch?v=5gFMU8_rxII\">Watch the recording\u003C\u002Fa>\n\n#### Monday 11 December, 16:00: Collective Action Approach to Drive Impact across the 2030 Agenda\n\nGretta Fenner moderated this session during the \u003Ca href=\"http:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F2547\">Private Sector Forum\u003C\u002Fa> \"Uniting Leaders for Business Integrity\" organised on the margins of CoSP 10 by UNODC and the UN Global Compact.\n\n#### Tuesday 12 December, 16:15: Righting the Wrong: Tools for Asset Recovery in Global Corruption Cases (Room A411–412)\n\nGretta Fenner moderated this session during the \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fstar.worldbank.org\u002Fevents\u002Fconference-states-parties-cosp-united-nations-convention-against-corruption-2023\">StAR Initiative Asset Recovery Day\u003C\u002Fa>, which asks: How can enforcement of global corruption cases, including sanctions, strengthen the fight against corruption and enhance asset recovery? This session explored:\n\n\n- legal avenues to recover, assess, and compensate for damages arising out of transnational bribery cases;\n- how anti-corruption sanctions can be part of an asset recovery strategy.\n\n\nSpeakers:\n\n\n- Sarah Zelkha, UK Home Office\n- Sam Hickey, London School of Economics\n- Elena Varta, Centre for Policies and Reforms, Moldova\n- Maria Nizzero, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI)\n\n\nThe event is co-organised by the StAR Initiative, United Kingdom, Basel Institute on Governance, OECD, Civil Forum for Asset Recovery and RUSI.\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fstar.worldbank.org\u002Fstar-day-agenda-2023\">View the StAR Day agenda\u003C\u002Fa> \n\n#### Wednesday 13 December, 13:00: Ukraine Integrity Ecosystem: War and Post-War Recovery (Room A305)\n\nJuhani Grossmann, Green Corruption Team Leader and Senior Advisor for Central and Eastern Europe, will speak at this event about the integrity ecosystem in Ukraine in the context of both the war and post-war recovery. Topics include:\n\n\n- Integrity ecosystem for preventing and managing global crises\n- How to build integrity through digitalisation\n- Ensuring transparency with monitoring and data analysis\n- The role of civil society during recovery process\n- Ways to efficiently manage financial resources within the context of integrity-building \n\n\nSpeakers:\n\n\n- Oleksandr Novikov, Head of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention\n- Anastasia Radina, Member of Parliament, Ukraine\n- Victor Liakh, President of the East Europe Foundation \n- Tetiana Khutor, Head of the Institute of Legislative Ideas\n- Kateryna Ryzhenko, Deputy Executive Director for Legal Affairs, Transparency International Ukraine\n- Juhani Grossmann, Senior Advisor for Central and Eastern Europe, Basel Institute on Governance\n\n\nThe event is organised by Ukraine's National Agency on Corruption Prevention and Transparency International Ukraine, together with the East Europe Foundation, Tapas Project, Institute of Legislative Ideas, Basel Institute on Governance and UNODC. \n\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2023-12\u002FUkraine%20side%20event%20flyer.pdf\">View flyer\u003C\u002Fa> | \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.zoom.us\u002Fwebinar\u002Fregister\u002FWN_EChuVg4qQFm5W7VqKOhshQ#\u002Fregistration\">Register to live stream\u003C\u002Fa>\n\n#### Wednesday 13 December, 14:00: Lessons Learned in Fighting Environmental Corruption (Room A302)\n\nLed by our Green Corruption team, this event will stake stock of progress in fighting the corruption that drives environmental degradation and the climate crisis. Specifically, the panellists will look at activities that support the resolution adopted at the 8th CoSP on \"Preventing and combating corruption as it relates to crimes that have an impact on the environment\" (\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.unodc.org\u002Fdocuments\u002Ftreaties\u002FUNCAC\u002FCOSP\u002Fsession8\u002FV2006805e.pdf\">Resolution 8\u002F12\u003C\u002Fa>).\n\nIt is part of a series of special events on environmental corruption taking place on Wednesday 13 December from 08:00–10:00 and 13:00–15:00.\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fnode\u002F2537\">Learn more\u003C\u002Fa> and register for virtual participation.\n\n#### Wednesday 13 December, 17:50–18:30: International Cooperation – From Policy to Practice (Room A305)\n\nThis special event of the GlobE Network, Basel Institute on Governance and Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong) will explore \"our common endeavours to strengthen international cooperation under the UNGASS Political Declaration\". \n\nGretta Fenner will speak about challenges in international cooperation to recover stolen assets. \n\n#### Thursday 14 December, 14:00: Financial Investigation: A Powerful Tool to Prevent Corruption (Room A311)\n\nGretta Fenner will speak at this Special Event on the challenges and opportunities of using financial investigations as a tool to prevent corruption.\n\nThe round table event is organised and moderated by UNODC Corruption and Economic Crime branch.\n\n\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2023-12\u002FSpecial%20Event%20-%20FI%20-%20Electronic%20Flyer.jpeg\">Download flyer\u003C\u002Fa> | \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fforms.office.com\u002FPages\u002FResponsePage.aspx?id=2zWeD09UYE-9zF6kFubccHgaK2cOWmNGil8h8z40ZFJUN0VYR0NEWDJESk9SSkdTRE5JNThZUTROUy4u&origin=QRCode\">Register to live stream\u003C\u002Fa> ","2023-12-11","2023-12-15","UNODC",[16,34,63,94],2524,[192,195,198,201],{"url":193,"caption":194},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2023-12\u002FCoSP10%20Basel%20Institute.png","Basel Institute delegation at CoSP10",{"url":196,"caption":197},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cosp10.us\u002F","CoSP10 website",{"url":199,"caption":200},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.unodc.org\u002Funodc\u002Fen\u002Fcorruption\u002FCOSP\u002Fsession10-special-events\u002F11-december-2023.html","CoSP10 Special Events programme (online)",{"url":202,"caption":203},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.unodc.org\u002Fdocuments\u002Ftreaties\u002FUNCAC\u002FCOSP\u002Fsession10\u002Fspecial-events\u002FCoSP10_programme_for_website_DRAFT.pdf","Full CoSP10 agenda","cosp-10-conference-of-the-states-parties-to-the-uncac-2524",{"id":206,"storage":135,"filename_disk":207,"filename_download":173,"title":184,"type":174,"created_on":208,"modified_on":208,"charset":7,"filesize":209,"width":177,"height":178,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":210,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":208},"358060c6-c3fe-4ab6-a2fe-7edabbc6c8fd","358060c6-c3fe-4ab6-a2fe-7edabbc6c8fd.webp","2025-02-17T20:33:26.000Z",19482,{},[],[],{"id":214,"title":215,"body":216,"date_start":217,"date_end":217,"organiser":218,"type":153,"topics":219,"nid":220,"links":221,"slug":225,"summary":7,"time":7,"location":7,"registration_link":7,"registration_link_text":7,"status":132,"image":226,"tags":233,"countries":234},232,"Anti-corruption interventions using a network approach – Seminar Series on Corruption and Impunity","Claudia Baez Camargo, Head of Public Governance, and Jacopo Costa, Senior Research Fellow, will speak at the 5th session of the Seminar Series on Corruption and Impunity. The series is sponsored by the Institute of Latin American Studies (ILAS) at Columbia University and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM Mexico).\n\nThe virtual event will cover:\n\n\n- The value of network approaches for studying and fighting corruption.\n- How network approaches are shaping the current empirical and practical activities of the Basel Institute's Public Governance team.\n- Concrete examples of using a network lens and social network analysis tools in anti-corruption activities. These include a recent pilot anti-corruption intervention in Tanzania that leveraged existing social networks, and research on the illicit connections between the Odebrecht construction giant and former President Alejandro Toledo. \n\n\nThe moderator is Issa Luna-Pla of ILAS Columbia University and UNAM Mexico.","2023-03-28","ILAS Columbia University and UNAM Mexico",[94],2395,[222],{"url":223,"caption":224},"https:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3SFEOiQ","Register","anti-corruption-interventions-using-a-network-approach-seminar-series-on-corruption-and-impunity-2395",{"id":227,"storage":135,"filename_disk":228,"filename_download":173,"title":215,"type":174,"created_on":229,"modified_on":229,"charset":7,"filesize":230,"width":177,"height":231,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":232,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":229},"66753a65-2f5a-47be-a1fb-a142490d2cbf","66753a65-2f5a-47be-a1fb-a142490d2cbf.webp","2025-02-17T20:33:42.000Z",54020,1236,{},[],[],{"id":236,"title":237,"body":238,"date_start":239,"date_end":239,"organiser":240,"type":153,"topics":241,"nid":242,"links":243,"slug":250,"summary":7,"time":7,"location":7,"registration_link":7,"registration_link_text":7,"status":132,"image":251,"tags":258,"countries":259},247,"Social norm and behaviour change approaches to address corruption and tackle illegal wildlife trade","Can social norm and behaviour change approaches help to reduce corruption related to illegal wildlife trade (IWT)? Very possibly. SNBC initiatives have been shown to help combat diverse corruption problems, although for those related to IWT and other areas of conservation and natural resource management, the evidence for doing so is sparse.\n\nAt this practitioner-focused webinar, Claudia Baez Camargo, Head of Public Governance at the Basel Institute on Governance, and Gayle Burgess, Behaviour Change Programme Leader at TRAFFIC, presented the key findings of their recently published study on the topic, including:\n\n\n- what social norm and behaviour change (SNBC) approaches are;\n- their use in fighting corruption;\n- the framework to assess entry points for behavioural interventions; and\n- how practitioners can apply these insights to effectively reduce corruption related to IWT.\n\n\nSabri Zain, Director of Policy at TRAFFIC, and Robert Lugolobi, Independent Consultant, Uganda, gave their insights into how SNBC approaches can be applied in programmes targeting the corruption that facilitates IWT.\n\nSaba Kassa, Senior Public Governance Specialist at the Basel Institute on Governance, moderated the panel.\n\nThe study, \"Behavioural drivers of corruption facilitating illegal wildlife trade – Problem analysis and state of the field review\" – has been produced in association with the Targeting Natural Resource Corruption (TNRC) project.","2022-06-27","Basel Institute on Governance; TRAFFIC",[63,94],2367,[244,247],{"url":245,"caption":246},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fwatch?v=rIndHtOLoco&list=PLYRnhpCcnLP8qHhH4UrVr4W6FmNyIqczV&index=5&t=629s","View recording",{"url":248,"caption":249},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-39","View related Working Paper","social-norm-and-behaviour-change-approaches-to-address-corruption-and-tackle-illegal-wildlife-trade-2367",{"id":252,"storage":135,"filename_disk":253,"filename_download":173,"title":237,"type":174,"created_on":254,"modified_on":254,"charset":7,"filesize":255,"width":177,"height":256,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":257,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":254},"b6c60198-5f6b-48c0-8117-ea0472c3522d","b6c60198-5f6b-48c0-8117-ea0472c3522d.webp","2025-02-17T20:33:52.000Z",35948,450,{},[],[],{"items":261,"total":13},[262,561,805,967,1099],{"id":263,"status":132,"sort":7,"date_created":264,"date_updated":265,"nid":7,"slug":266,"title":267,"body":268,"citation":269,"language":7,"year":7,"publisher":152,"date_published":270,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":272,"link_external":7,"featured":271,"topics":288,"languages":289,"type":291,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":293,"summary":295,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":296,"short_version":297,"subtitle":7,"image":298,"og_image":309,"countries":319,"tags":395,"pdf":472,"authors":499},2452,"2026-08-24T15:58:51.000Z","2026-08-26T09:59:31.000Z","pb-17-border-corruption","Policy Brief 17: Protecting border spaces from risks of corruption and criminal behaviours","Border spaces are designed to regulate movement and stop illicit trade, yet corruption often allows smuggling and trafficking to continue alongside legitimate commerce. This Policy Brief compares research findings from the port of Rotterdam and the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint between Bulgaria and Türkiye to examine how corruption and cross-border crime interact in border spaces.\n\nIt finds that stronger border controls, enhanced technology and new regulations do not necessarily suppress crime. Such interventions can produce unintended consequences, including new opportunities and incentives for corruption. Criminal actors adapt by changing both corruption and concealment strategies to avoid detection and protect their profits.\n\nThe brief sets out five recommendations for designing anti-corruption and border security reforms that anticipate this adaptation and evolution rather than being undermined by it.\n\n### About this Policy Brief\n\nThis publication is part of the Basel Institute on Governance Policy Brief series [ISSN 2624-9669](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002F?type=Policy+Brief). You may freely share or republish it under a Creative Commons [BY-NC-ND 4.0](https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-nc-nd\u002F4.0\u002F) licence.\n\nThis publication was written as part of the [FALCON](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F) (Fight Against Large-scale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project. FALCON is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance, as an associated partner without the right to receive funds directly from the European Research Executive Agency, has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).\n\nThe contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI.","Jäger, Noémi, Jacopo Costa and Saba Kassa. 2026. ‘Protecting border spaces from risks of corruption and criminal behaviours’. Policy Brief 17, Basel Institute on Governance. Available at: [baselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fpb-17-border-corruption](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fpb-17-border-corruption).","2026-08-25",false,[273,276,279,282,285],{"url":274,"caption":275},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcms\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002F3cae3fc6-c1e7-4483-9fb8-f050c241c6fc\u002FPB17_Border-corruption.pdf?v=20260825143544000","Download PDF",{"url":277,"caption":278},"\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58","View related Working Paper 58 (port of Rotterdam)",{"url":280,"caption":281},"\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fevolution-corruption-and-crimes-kapitan-andreevo-border-checkpoint-impact-eu-accession","Read related article (Kapitan Andreevo)",{"url":283,"caption":284},"\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-63-anticipatory-governance","View related Working Paper 63 (Anticipatory governance)",{"url":286,"caption":287},"\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications?type=Policy%20Brief","View all Policy Briefs",[94],[290],"English",[292],"Policy Brief",[294],"Main page","This Policy Brief compares findings of research on corruption at the port of Rotterdam and at the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint between Bulgaria and Türkiye. It examines how corruption and cross-border crime interact in border spaces and what this means for enforcement efforts.","","Formal border areas are designed to regulate the movement of goods and people and protect territories from the harms of illicit trade. Yet smuggling, trafficking, sanctions evasion and tax offences continue to flow through the same channels as legitimate commerce, often facilitated by corruption.\n\nAs part of the Horizon Europe [FALCON project](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F), the Basel Institute's Prevention, Research and Innovation team studied two major border spaces: the port of Rotterdam, the largest seaport in Europe, and the Kapitan Andreevo checkpoint between Bulgaria and Türkiye, one of the EU's key external land borders. Both have strengthened their control capacity through modernised infrastructure, new detection technologies, improved data sharing and better trained personnel.\n\nThis Policy Brief compares the findings from that research to examine how corruption and cross-border crime interact and evolve in response to strengthened enforcement.\n\nIn both cases, tighter controls did not suppress illicit activity so much as reshape it. When concealment stops working, corruption becomes more important for bypassing inspections. When corruption gets too risky, concealment methods grow more innovative. When collusive arrangements with officials break down, corruption may turn coercive, or criminals may seek out new insiders. They may even change trafficking routes altogether.\n\nThe brief concludes with five recommendations for policymakers and practitioners, centred on the need to anticipate how criminal and corrupt strategies evolve in response to reforms:\n- Develop a strong understanding of underlying criminal dynamics in border spaces by mapping the stakeholders and their relationships, interests and incentives.\n- Build an anti-corruption framework using data-driven red flags and risk indicators.\n- Incorporate anti-corruption measures into efforts against trafficking and other cross-border crimes.\n- Design reforms and interventions with attention to how criminals may respond to them.\n- Adopt foresight techniques and anticipatory governance approaches to anticipate how corruption may evolve.",{"id":299,"storage":135,"filename_disk":300,"filename_download":301,"title":302,"type":139,"created_on":303,"modified_on":304,"charset":7,"filesize":305,"width":306,"height":307,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":308,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":303},"cb511a30-f111-44d4-af53-1b6872f1a92d","cb511a30-f111-44d4-af53-1b6872f1a92d.jpg","PB17_Border-corruption_cover-page.jpg","Policy Brief 17 Border Corruption Cover Page","2026-08-25T14:17:03.000Z","2026-08-25T14:29:51.000Z",316276,1654,2339,{},{"id":310,"storage":135,"filename_disk":311,"filename_download":173,"title":312,"type":174,"created_on":313,"modified_on":314,"charset":7,"filesize":315,"width":177,"height":316,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":317,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":318,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":313},"693afaed-084c-4590-aafd-c2d51b28adf7","693afaed-084c-4590-aafd-c2d51b28adf7.webp","How stronger borders can create smarter corruption: lessons from one of Europe's most strategic border crossings","2026-06-04T21:13:44.000Z","2026-06-24T14:07:07.000Z",12144,533,"Near the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing check point in Bulgaria. Photo: Bin im Garten, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia 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Brief 17 on border corruption","application\u002Fpdf","67f22e04-d26f-4baa-b91f-acc5f89d87f5","2026-08-25T14:19:38.000Z","2026-08-25T14:35:44.000Z",350691,[500,520,541],{"id":346,"publications_id":501,"authors_id":516},{"id":263,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":323,"date_created":264,"user_updated":324,"date_updated":265,"nid":7,"slug":266,"image":299,"title":267,"body":268,"citation":269,"language":7,"year":7,"publisher":152,"date_published":270,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":502,"link_external":7,"featured":271,"topics":508,"languages":509,"type":510,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":511,"summary":295,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":296,"short_version":297,"subtitle":7,"og_image":310,"countries":512,"tags":513,"pdf":514,"authors":515},[503,504,505,506,507],{"url":274,"caption":275},{"url":277,"caption":278},{"url":280,"caption":281},{"url":283,"caption":284},{"url":286,"caption":287},[94],[290],[292],[294],[321,336,337],[339,340,341,342],[344],[346,347,348],{"id":517,"name":518,"position":7,"image":519},584,"Noémi Jäger","65c7f55d-6b03-4b42-a5cc-4c546c9f4873",{"id":347,"publications_id":521,"authors_id":536},{"id":263,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":323,"date_created":264,"user_updated":324,"date_updated":265,"nid":7,"slug":266,"image":299,"title":267,"body":268,"citation":269,"language":7,"year":7,"publisher":152,"date_published":270,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":522,"link_external":7,"featured":271,"topics":528,"languages":529,"type":530,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":531,"summary":295,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":296,"short_version":297,"subtitle":7,"og_image":310,"countries":532,"tags":533,"pdf":534,"authors":535},[523,524,525,526,527],{"url":274,"caption":275},{"url":277,"caption":278},{"url":280,"caption":281},{"url":283,"caption":284},{"url":286,"caption":287},[94],[290],[292],[294],[321,336,337],[339,340,341,342],[344],[346,347,348],{"id":537,"name":538,"position":539,"image":540},304,"Dr Jacopo Costa","Senior Specialist, Prevention, Research and Innovation","90469998-3598-471d-9499-48b19f557c7d",{"id":348,"publications_id":542,"authors_id":557},{"id":263,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":323,"date_created":264,"user_updated":324,"date_updated":265,"nid":7,"slug":266,"image":299,"title":267,"body":268,"citation":269,"language":7,"year":7,"publisher":152,"date_published":270,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":543,"link_external":7,"featured":271,"topics":549,"languages":550,"type":551,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":552,"summary":295,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":296,"short_version":297,"subtitle":7,"og_image":310,"countries":553,"tags":554,"pdf":555,"authors":556},[544,545,546,547,548],{"url":274,"caption":275},{"url":277,"caption":278},{"url":280,"caption":281},{"url":283,"caption":284},{"url":286,"caption":287},[94],[290],[292],[294],[321,336,337],[339,340,341,342],[344],[346,347,348],{"id":558,"name":559,"position":7,"image":560},303,"Dr Saba Kassa","f6382220-0a46-438a-bead-7dc8f4e2abe5",{"id":562,"status":132,"sort":7,"date_created":563,"date_updated":564,"nid":7,"slug":565,"title":566,"body":567,"citation":568,"language":7,"year":7,"publisher":152,"date_published":569,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":570,"link_external":7,"featured":271,"topics":577,"languages":578,"type":579,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":581,"summary":582,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":7,"short_version":583,"subtitle":584,"image":585,"og_image":595,"countries":604,"tags":659,"pdf":716,"authors":759},2451,"2026-08-06T10:03:53.000Z","2026-08-25T08:15:29.000Z","wp-63-anticipatory-governance","Working Paper 63: Anticipating future corruption","This Working Paper explores how insights from foresight and anticipatory governance can strengthen anti-corruption approaches and initiatives. It aims to:\n\n- explain why it is important to understand corruption as a challenge that arises in complex social systems and consider the implications of this for the fight against corruption;\n- present key approaches in foresight and anticipatory governance; and\n- show how insights from these approaches can help develop and implement more forward-looking and adaptive anti-corruption strategies by anticipating unintended consequences and identifying future risks and opportunities.\n\n### About this Working Paper\nThis paper is published as part of the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper series, [ISSN: 2624-9650](\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002F?type=Working+Paper).\n\nYou may share or republish it under a Creative Commons [BY-NC-ND 4.0](https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-nc-nd\u002F4.0\u002Fdeed.en) International Licence.\n\nThis Working Paper was written as part of the FALCON (Fight Against Largescale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project. FALCON is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance, as an associated partner without the right to receive funds directly from the European Research Executive Agency, has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).\n\nThe contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI.\n\nCover image: generated with Magnfic","Costa, Jacopo, Claudia Baez Camargo and Saba Kassa. 2026. 'Anticipating future corruption: Strengthening anti-corruption through foresight and anticipatory governance'. Working Paper 63, Basel Institute on Governance. Available at: https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-63-anticipatory-governance.","2026-08-19",[571,574],{"url":572,"caption":573},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Flearning\u002Fevents\u002Fcorruption-2-0-3-0-4-0-what-s-next-2942","View related webinar",{"url":575,"caption":576},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications?type=Working%20Paper","View all Working Papers",[94],[290],[580],"Working Paper",[294],"This Working Paper explores how insights from foresight and anticipatory governance can inform anti-corruption efforts that are more forward-looking and adaptive.","### Executive summary\n\nCorruption is a complex problem. It emerges within broad political, economic and social contexts, and is sustained by the actors that are part of those systems. Corruption is not just an anomaly or the result of a few bad apples. It is a functional tool for achieving goals and is enacted through networks whose members and strategies change over time. Traditional anti-corruption approaches that aim to reduce isolated and individual corrupt behaviour are therefore increasingly seen as ineffective in addressing corruption as a dynamic and evolving phenomenon. What is needed are adaptive anti-corruption interventions.\n\nThis Working Paper explores how insights from foresight and anticipatory governance – approaches geared towards addressing complex problems – can inform the design and implementation of more forward-looking and adaptive anti-corruption strategies. Strategic foresight, i.e. the systematic exploration of multiple possible futures, and anticipatory governance, i.e. the institutional embedding of foresight in policy cycles, offer a suite of practical tools. Examples of such tools include:\n\n- Cross-impact analysis: assesses how different variables react to each other and how this could influence potential outcomes.\n- Horizon scanning: monitors emerging trends and signals of change.\n- Trend analysis: tracks macro-level changes.\n- Scenario building: projects plausible futures.\n\nApplying foresight and anticipatory governance methods can support more effective detection of corruption problems and inform how we respond to them. They help us better understand how actors within a system respond to each other and to changes in the environment, such as new enforcement efforts or major societal and political transformations.\n\nThese insights are critical for designing and implementing interventions that regularly review underlying assumptions, anticipate backlash or corruption displacement, and are more effective, resilient and responsive to their context. This is important because change is non-linear, meaning the outcomes of anti-corruption interventions may be uncertain.\n\nThe ways in which foresight and anticipatory governance can strengthen anti-corruption strategies are illustrated using real-life case studies of border corruption at the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands and the Kapitan Andreevo land border checkpoint between Bulgaria and Türkiye.\n\nIn both settings, well-intentioned efforts to strengthen enforcement (for example, enhanced border controls and EU accession-related regulatory changes) inadvertently fuelled new corruption risks, higher bribes and more sophisticated criminal strategies. Yet, the examples also illustrate very practically how incorporating insights from foresight and anticipatory governance approaches can help anti-corruption practitioners anticipate these consequences, track behavioural signals and adapt interventions before harm occurs.\n\nThe paper proposes a three-step framework:\n\n- **Mapping the system**: Understand corruption as emerging from a complex system of actors, incentives and context.\n- **Anticipating actor responses and unintended consequences**: Use foresight tools to work out how actors may react to a reform, and to build indicators that catch both risks and progress early.\n- **Scanning the horizon for trends, new risks and opportunities**: Track macro-level (political, economic, legal, technological, societal) shifts that create new corruption risks or open windows for reform.\n\nAt the same time, the paper emphasises that artificial intelligence tools and other technological innovations can support all three steps, for instance by accelerating scenario generation, processing large volumes of data or modelling how actors might respond to an anti-corruption intervention.\n\nNevertheless, the paper underlines that foresight and anticipatory governance are not panaceas. Corruption thrives in conditions of irreducible uncertainty, and an element of unpredictability will always persist. Beyond the tools they offer, these approaches are valuable because they prompt us to ask different questions. Why does corruption persist here? Who benefits from the status quo? What signals would indicate changing behaviour? How might actors adapt to a new reform?\n\nThe following key recommendations for policymakers and anti-corruption practitioners emerge from the analysis:\n\n- Shift the focus of anti-corruption intervention design and implementation from linear to adaptive forms.\n- Adopt a complexity lens from the outset of an anti-corruption intervention.\n- Incorporate foresight and anticipatory thinking into the design of anti-corruption interventions.\n- Fine-tune the scale of foresight and anticipatory governance work according to the context, the knowledge of those involved and the resources available.\n- Consider how AI tools and other technological solutions can support foresight and anticipatory governance objectives, while also recognising their limitations.\n","Strengthening anti-corruption through foresight and anticipatory governance",{"id":586,"storage":135,"filename_disk":587,"filename_download":588,"title":589,"type":139,"created_on":590,"modified_on":590,"charset":7,"filesize":591,"width":592,"height":593,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":594,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":590},"ce72f4a9-81fa-4dae-a0a2-c9cdb8cc855d","ce72f4a9-81fa-4dae-a0a2-c9cdb8cc855d.jpg","WP63_Anticipatory-governance_cover-page.jpg","W P63 Anticipatory Governance Cover 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Evolution of Corruption and Crimes at Kapitan Andreevo Border Checkpoint: The Impact of EU Accession","Published in the _Journal of Illicit Trade, Financial Crime, and Compliance_, this article examines how Bulgaria’s 2007 accession to the European Union transformed illegal activities and corruption at the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint.\n\nWhile the introduction of stricter EU regulations and advanced surveillance technology aimed to secure the border, these measures had the effect of transforming criminal strategies and corruption. The authors detail a shift from blatant smuggling to more sophisticated financial frauds, VAT carousel schemes and the illicit privatisation of public border functions.\n\nThe article highlights that in some cases, it was the bribery schemes that evolved to bypass new standards. In other cases – particularly involving drug trafficking and the smuggling of human beings – it was the criminal strategies that transformed, including advanced concealment methods or new smuggling routes.\n\nThe study also offers a nuanced perspective on the relationship between corruption and criminal activites at border checkpoints: stronger capacity to counter criminal activities could lead to an increase in the risk of corruption, while a more coherent anti corruption framework could trigger criminal activities to evolve. Ultimately, the article argues that anti-crime and anti-corruption policies must account for this evolutionary nature.","Costa J, Camargo CB, Jäger N, Kassa S. The Evolution of Corruption and Crimes at Kapitan Andreevo Border Checkpoint: The Impact of EU Accession. J Illicit Trade Financ Crime Compli. 2026; 2: 30-46.\nDOI: https:\u002F\u002Fdoi.org\u002F10.65879\u002F3070-6122.2026.2.03.",2026,"2026-05-01",[817],{"url":818,"caption":275},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcms\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Ff4dc810d-6a45-47c3-ac38-970f08711caf\u002FJITFCC-Vol2-2026-Kapitan-Andreevo-BCP-Impact-of-EU-accession.pdf?v=20260601223425000",[820],{"url":821,"caption":822},"https:\u002F\u002Fjitfccjournal.com\u002Findex.php\u002Fjitfcc\u002Farticle\u002Fview\u002F16","View on Journal 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the complexity of border corruption: How technological tools such as the project FALCON dashboard can support investigations","Corruption at land and sea borders facilitates smuggling, sanctions evasion, tax offences and the entry of counterfeit, substandard or unsafe goods into countries including EU member states. This report conceptualises border corruption as a complex system of actors, events and illicit exchanges that is difficult to detect and investigate.\n\nDrawing on research from the Horizon Europe FALCON (Fight Against Large-scale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project, it explores how innovative technological tools – illustrated by the “FALCON dashboard” – can help investigators manage, visualise, interpret and report large volumes of heterogeneous data in support of more effective investigations.\n\n### About this report\n\nYou may share or republish this report under a Creative Commons [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-nc-nd\u002F4.0\u002Fdeed.en) licence.\n\nThis report was written as part of the FALCON project. FALCON is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance, as an associated partner without the right to receive funds directly from the European Research Executive Agency, has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).\n\nThe contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI.","Costa, Jacopo, and Marco San Biagio. 2026. “Tackling the complexity of border corruption: How technological tools such as the project FALCON dashboard can support investigations”. Basel Institute on Governance. Available at: https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fhow-technology-can-support-border-corruption-investigations","2026-04-20",[977,979],{"url":978,"caption":275},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcms\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Fd2861363-49d1-40cd-97f3-d8e372b33378\u002F260416-FALCON-dashboard-technology-and-border-corruption-investigations.pdf?v=20260601223426000",{"url":980,"caption":981},"\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fqg38","Read Quick Guide to border corruption",[],[94],[290],[986],"Report","Corruption at land and sea borders facilitates smuggling, sanctions evasion, tax offences and\nthe entry of counterfeit, substandard or unsafe goods into countries including EU member\nstates. It is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon that poses significant challenges to law\nenforcement. Based on a literature review and empirical research including interviews and\ncase studies, this report conceptualises border corruption as a dynamic system of actors,\nevents and illicit exchanges. It also assesses how new technologies and innovations can\nstrengthen investigations.\n\nBorder areas are spaces that bring together a variety of public and private actors, regulatory\nfunctions and illicit activities. Corruption is structurally embedded, making it difficult to detect\nand investigate. Investigations in this context require the integration and interpretation of large\nvolumes of heterogeneous data spanning administrative records, financial transactions,\ncorporate structures, border crossing data and information from social media.\n\nThis level of complexity can result in information overload, fragmented analysis and limited\ncapacity to extract actionable insights for planning law enforcement operations. Additionally,\nissues with reporting and information sharing can hinder collaboration between field operatives\nand their line managers and superiors, who have critical responsibilities in terms of case\nmanagement and financial planning.\n\nBuilding on research conducted within the Horizon Europe FALCON (Fight Against Largescale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project, the report presents one of the\nproject’s technological outputs as an example of how technology can be leveraged: the\nFALCON dashboard. Currently in the piloting phase, this innovative tool has been designed to\nsupport investigations into border corruption and related offences by enabling the systematic\ncollection, integration, visualisation and analysis of investigative information and evidence.\nThis report demonstrates how the FALCON dashboard can assist investigators in managing\nhybrid data sources (manual and automated), constructing and navigating evidence graphs,\nand identifying key actors and relational patterns. The tool also lets investigators track the\nevolution of their investigations over time. Particular attention is paid to the dashboard’s\ncapacity to reduce visual saturation, enable multi-level analysis and facilitate targeted queries,\nthereby enhancing sense-making and investigative prioritisation.\n\nAlthough the FALCON dashboard itself is not yet publicly available, its presentation in this\nreport provides inspiration for similar technological innovation. The report argues that tools\nsuch as the FALCON dashboard can bolster investigative capabilities by enhancing analytical\nclarity, operational efficiency and communication between investigators, supervisors,\nprosecutors and other relevant stakeholders. However, it also prompts the need for further  reflection on broader challenges relating to data quality, interoperability, institutional\ncoordination and data protection.\n\nOverall, the study provides a conceptual and practical framework for understanding how\ntechnological platforms can support evidence-based, adaptive responses to border corruption.",{"id":989,"storage":135,"filename_disk":990,"filename_download":991,"title":992,"type":139,"created_on":831,"modified_on":831,"charset":7,"filesize":993,"width":994,"height":307,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":995,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":831},"83e615dd-a58e-4dec-a3d3-40b0cfe4cd32","83e615dd-a58e-4dec-a3d3-40b0cfe4cd32.jpg","260416_FALCON dashboard report_cover.jpg","FALCON dasboard 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San Biagio",{"id":1100,"status":132,"sort":7,"date_created":1101,"date_updated":1102,"nid":1103,"slug":1104,"title":1105,"body":1106,"citation":7,"language":7,"year":814,"publisher":1107,"date_published":1108,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":1109,"link_external":1116,"featured":271,"topics":1120,"languages":1121,"type":1122,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":7,"summary":7,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":7,"short_version":7,"subtitle":7,"image":1123,"og_image":7,"countries":1132,"tags":1133,"pdf":1169,"authors":1191},2444,"2026-06-01T22:10:26.000Z","2026-08-11T07:32:29.000Z",2946,"recommendations-combatting-border-corruption-falcon-policy-brief","Recommendations for combatting border corruption (FALCON Policy Brief)","Corruption at borders poses a significant threat to the integrity of the European Union’s external borders, undermining security, trust, and governance. And border corruption is not static — it evolves in response to new controls, technologies and enforcement strategies. This means that even well-designed measures may lose effectiveness over time.\n\nA new Policy Brief by the FALCON (Fight Against Large-scale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project outlines actionable recommendations for EU policymakers and officials involved preventing and combatting border corruption.\n\nThe brief identifies four priority areas:\n\n- reducing discretionary face-to-face interactions at border crossing points through digitalisation;\n- developing harmonised, risk-based digital infrastructures that can detect corruption-prone patterns;\n- limiting manual data handling to close opportunities for manipulation; and\n- strengthening the conceptual alignment between anti-trafficking and anti-corruption strategies.\n\nIt argues that effective reform requires corruption-sensitive implementation frameworks, enhanced inter-agency coordination and a shift toward anticipatory governance.\n\nThe Basel Institute on Governance is an associated partner of the FALCON project. [Jacopo Costa](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout-us\u002Fpeople\u002Fdr-jacopo-costa) contributed to the Policy Brief and related research.\n\n_FALCON is funded under the Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance receives funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI)._","FALCON - Fight Against Large-scale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks","2026-03-25",[1110,1112,1114],{"url":1111,"caption":275},"https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fcms\u002Fapi\u002Fassets\u002Ff9d137b9-84ae-4b9d-b28b-378db8754489\u002F2026-03-18-FALCON-Policy-Brief-04-Recommendations-for-Combatting-Border-Corruption.pdf?v=20260601223427000",{"url":980,"caption":1113},"Related Quick Guide to border corruption",{"url":277,"caption":1115},"Related Working Paper on corruption at the port of Rotterdam",[1117],{"url":1118,"caption":1119},"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F2026\u002F03\u002Ffalcon-policy-brief-recommendations-for-combatting-border-corruption\u002F","Related FALCON news",[94],[290],[986],{"id":1124,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1125,"filename_download":1126,"title":1127,"type":139,"created_on":1128,"modified_on":1128,"charset":7,"filesize":1129,"width":306,"height":1130,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1131,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1128},"bc5fa519-a9aa-472c-aed6-91849cddb2aa","bc5fa519-a9aa-472c-aed6-91849cddb2aa.jpg","2026_03_18-FALCON-Policy-Brief-04_Border-Corruption_Cover-page.jpg","FALCON Policy Brief 4 on border corruption_cover page","2026-06-01T22:18:31.000Z",327770,2327,{},[],[1134,1153],{"id":1135,"publications_id":1136,"tags_id":1152},5230,{"id":1100,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":840,"date_created":1101,"user_updated":841,"date_updated":1102,"nid":1103,"slug":1104,"image":1124,"title":1105,"body":1106,"citation":7,"language":7,"year":814,"publisher":1107,"date_published":1108,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":1137,"link_external":1141,"featured":271,"topics":1143,"languages":1144,"type":1145,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":7,"summary":7,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":7,"short_version":7,"subtitle":7,"og_image":7,"countries":1146,"tags":1147,"pdf":1149,"authors":1151},[1138,1139,1140],{"url":1111,"caption":275},{"url":980,"caption":1113},{"url":277,"caption":1115},[1142],{"url":1118,"caption":1119},[94],[290],[986],[],[1135,1148],5231,[1150],2498,[],{"id":413,"name":414},{"id":1148,"publications_id":1154,"tags_id":1168},{"id":1100,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":840,"date_created":1101,"user_updated":841,"date_updated":1102,"nid":1103,"slug":1104,"image":1124,"title":1105,"body":1106,"citation":7,"language":7,"year":814,"publisher":1107,"date_published":1108,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":1155,"link_external":1159,"featured":271,"topics":1161,"languages":1162,"type":1163,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":7,"summary":7,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":7,"short_version":7,"subtitle":7,"og_image":7,"countries":1164,"tags":1165,"pdf":1166,"authors":1167},[1156,1157,1158],{"url":1111,"caption":275},{"url":980,"caption":1113},{"url":277,"caption":1115},[1160],{"url":1118,"caption":1119},[94],[290],[986],[],[1135,1148],[1150],[],{"id":432,"name":433},[1170],{"id":1150,"sort":7,"publications_id":1171,"directus_files_id":1185},{"id":1100,"status":132,"sort":7,"user_created":840,"date_created":1101,"user_updated":841,"date_updated":1102,"nid":1103,"slug":1104,"image":1124,"title":1105,"body":1106,"citation":7,"language":7,"year":814,"publisher":1107,"date_published":1108,"external":271,"topic":7,"link_internal":1172,"link_external":1176,"featured":271,"topics":1178,"languages":1179,"type":1180,"area":7,"programme":7,"websites":7,"summary":7,"pdf_text":7,"main_points":7,"short_version":7,"subtitle":7,"og_image":7,"countries":1181,"tags":1182,"pdf":1183,"authors":1184},[1173,1174,1175],{"url":1111,"caption":275},{"url":980,"caption":1113},{"url":277,"caption":1115},[1177],{"url":1118,"caption":1119},[94],[290],[986],[],[1135,1148],[1150],[],{"id":1186,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1187,"filename_download":1188,"title":275,"type":494,"folder":495,"uploaded_by":840,"created_on":1189,"modified_by":7,"modified_on":1189,"charset":7,"filesize":1190,"width":7,"height":7,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":275,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":7,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1189},"f9d137b9-84ae-4b9d-b28b-378db8754489","f9d137b9-84ae-4b9d-b28b-378db8754489.pdf","2026-03-18-FALCON-Policy-Brief-04-Recommendations-for-Combatting-Border-Corruption.pdf","2026-06-01T22:34:27.000Z",174455,[],{"items":1193,"total":98},[1194,1276,1362,1472,1594],{"id":1195,"status":132,"date_created":1196,"date_updated":1197,"title":1198,"type":1199,"body":1200,"date":1201,"topic":7,"slug":1202,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1203,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1204,"language":290,"image":1205,"translation_of":7,"countries":1216,"tags":1217,"authors":1218,"images":1272,"translations":1273,"content":1274,"translations_news":1275},10652,"2026-09-01T11:20:37.000Z","2026-09-01T11:42:15.000Z","Why it’s worth investing in international anti-corruption research – three cheers for the FALCON project","Blog","For three years, the Basel Institute's Prevention, Research and Innovation team worked with 24 other research partners from across Europe on the ambitious Horizon Europe [FALCON](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F) (Fight Against Large-scale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project.\n\nOur consortium brought together expertise in social science and research, technology development and law enforcement. We worked closely together to innovate the fight against corruption and organised crime by designing data-driven risk indicators and AI-enhanced solutions.\n\nThis massive research project generated many useful “deliverables” – corruption intelligence, risk indicators, practical tools, policy guidance – that anti-corruption and counter-crime practitioners can directly apply in their work.\n\nPerhaps more importantly, the research and interactions have helped us all understand corruption better – and provided the evidence we need to innovate anti-corruption methods.\n\nThis is bringing real benefits to our technical assistance to governments and organisations seeking to find smarter ways to prevent and combat corrupt and criminal networks, in Europe and beyond. It’s an example of why international, multidisciplinary anti-corruption research projects are worth the investment even in times of tightened belts and budget cuts.\n\nAs the project winds down, here are four lessons we’d like to share with others. We also offer our warm thanks to the consortium leaders and partners, and to the EU institutions and individuals who continue to promote deep research into corruption and crime.\n\n## Lesson 1: Understanding how corruption evolves helps anti-corruption practitioners keep up\n\nFALCON provided clear examples of how – and how quickly – corruption and crime adapt and evolve.\n\nTraditional understandings of corruption focus on a fairly static list of behaviours like bribery or embezzlement. In fact, FALCON research demonstrated how corruption occurs in complex systems, playing out through resilient networks of actors, institutions and incentives that evolve within equally complex political, economic and social contexts.\n\nEach new enforcement measure, detection tool or regulation changes the behaviour of those trying to circumvent it. When challenged, criminal actors adapt, prompting authorities to respond with further reforms.\n\nIt's a never-ending dance of push and shove that we observed in a range of different settings. For example, in our research for the FALCON project, we have seen that criminal actors:\n\n-   **adapt their corruption and criminal strategies** in response to strengthened enforcement (see our articles on [the evolution of corruption](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fconceptualizing-evolution-corruption-empirical-analysis-italy) and on [corruption and crime at the Kapitan Andreevo border](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fevolution-corruption-and-crimes-kapitan-andreevo-border-checkpoint-impact-eu-accession));\n-   **relocate their illicit activities elsewhere** (see our [Working Paper 58](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58) on corruption as a facilitator of drug trafficking in the port of Rotterdam); and\n-   **apply counter strategies**, such as undermining reform efforts and dismantling or weakening anti-corruption institutions and policies; or even\n-   **weaponise the anti-corruption apparatus** against rivals (look out for our forthcoming report on backlashes to anti-corruption reforms).\n\nHow to keep up?\n\nOur approach, which we refined during the FALCON project, is to always base anti-corruption and counter-crime interventions on a strong understanding of underlying criminal dynamics.\n\nMap the stakeholders and their relationships, interests and incentives. Identify risks and problems that could arise.\n\nFrom there, legal reforms, grassroots initiatives, technology and everything else can function best as a flexible anti-corruption toolbox. We assemble and revisit tools as the context shifts and our knowledge advances.\n\n## Lesson 2. Use AI, but understand its limitations\n\nA key point often forgotten amongst the technology optimism is to treat tech tools, including the ones built as part of the FALCON project, as _inputs_ to expert human judgement, not as substitutes for it.\n\nA risk indicator or dashboard score can flag suspicious activities that require a closer look, but it can't tell you why an anomalous pattern exists or what to do about it. We must check an AI model's output against contextual knowledge and other evidence, and keep in mind what it was and wasn’t calibrated to detect.\n\nThe same caution applies to AI. AI tools can be useful for analysing huge quantities of data and detecting patterns that point to corruption. But an AI could just as easily facilitate corruption as help you to tackle it, so make sure human judgement stays in the driving seat.\n\n## Lesson 3. Reach beyond the bubble to identify synergies or unintended consequences\n\nIt can be tempting for anti-corruption researchers to work only within the anti-corruption community, and may seem more efficient.\n\nBut the truly multidisciplinary FALCON research consortium showed how closely crimes and corruption are interlinked. Look at them separately and you miss the true picture. Intervene to prevent one problem, and you might have unintended impacts on another.\n\nAn example from our research at the border between Türkiye and Bulgaria:\n\n-   Beefing up border control capacity against trafficking can result in criminals relying _even more_ on corruption to avoid detection.\n-   Conversely, stronger enforcement against corruption can lead to traffickers using more sophisticated criminal strategies to get illicit goods safely across the border.\n\nBefore designing any intervention, we should assess how increased pressure in one policy area may affect others, including through the displacing of risks.\n\nAnti-corruption programmes are more effective when we ask these questions from the outset and coordinate more meaningfully with those working on related issues like organised crime and security.\n\n## Lesson 4. Use strategic foresight – systematically anticipate new risks and changed contexts\n\nOur work on [foresight and anticipatory governance](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-63-anticipatory-governance\u002F) has enhanced how we approach political economy assessments, including in projects unrelated to FALCON.\n\nWe have long found it important to consider what could shift the terrain – a new law, technology, conflict or other – and what this would mean for a planned anti-corruption intervention. Now we have found tools and systems to do this systematically and periodically.\n\nThe approach helps our partners to revisit anti-corruption frameworks, track emerging risks and anticipate unintended consequences. That’s key to mitigating them and adapting in good time.\n\nIt also tangibly improves monitoring and evaluation frameworks, as we are not only reporting on what happened in the past, but adapting to what is up ahead.\n\n## What’s next?\n\nThe FALCON research project provided not only the practical guidance and reports it promised, but also a far more detailed understanding of how corruption and crime interlink and smarter tools to act on them both.\n\nAs the project closes, we are grateful for the partnership, energised by what we've learned and ready to expand and apply them in our technical assistance to governments and development partners worldwide.\n\n_The FALCON project was funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute’s involvement in the project was funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI._","2026-08-31","falcon-end-project",[51,94],[294],{"id":1206,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1207,"filename_download":1208,"title":1209,"type":139,"created_on":1210,"modified_on":1211,"charset":7,"filesize":1212,"width":1213,"height":1214,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1215,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1210},"9c82ba33-9bd7-4b4e-9db4-c38fb3324739","9c82ba33-9bd7-4b4e-9db4-c38fb3324739.jpg","FALCON project end 1.jpg","FALCON consortium members at the closing event in Vilnius, Lithuania in July 2026. Photo: FALCON project.","2026-09-01T11:41:40.000Z","2026-09-01T11:42:09.000Z",1064088,1336,833,{},[],[],[1219,1236,1248,1260],{"id":1220,"news_id":1221,"authors_id":1235},1392,{"id":1195,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1196,"user_updated":1222,"date_updated":1197,"title":1198,"type":1199,"body":1200,"image":1206,"date":1201,"topic":7,"slug":1202,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1223,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1224,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1225,"tags":1226,"authors":1227,"images":1231,"translations":1232,"content":1233,"translations_news":1234},"545a204d-e41b-4882-afda-481ecf3fd971",[51,94],[294],[],[],[1220,1228,1229,1230],1393,1394,1395,[],[],[],[],{"id":537,"name":538,"position":539,"image":540},{"id":1228,"news_id":1237,"authors_id":1247},{"id":1195,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1196,"user_updated":1222,"date_updated":1197,"title":1198,"type":1199,"body":1200,"image":1206,"date":1201,"topic":7,"slug":1202,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1238,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1239,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1240,"tags":1241,"authors":1242,"images":1243,"translations":1244,"content":1245,"translations_news":1246},[51,94],[294],[],[],[1220,1228,1229,1230],[],[],[],[],{"id":558,"name":559,"position":7,"image":560},{"id":1229,"news_id":1249,"authors_id":1259},{"id":1195,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1196,"user_updated":1222,"date_updated":1197,"title":1198,"type":1199,"body":1200,"image":1206,"date":1201,"topic":7,"slug":1202,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1250,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1251,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1252,"tags":1253,"authors":1254,"images":1255,"translations":1256,"content":1257,"translations_news":1258},[51,94],[294],[],[],[1220,1228,1229,1230],[],[],[],[],{"id":517,"name":518,"position":7,"image":519},{"id":1230,"news_id":1261,"authors_id":1271},{"id":1195,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1196,"user_updated":1222,"date_updated":1197,"title":1198,"type":1199,"body":1200,"image":1206,"date":1201,"topic":7,"slug":1202,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1262,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1263,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1264,"tags":1265,"authors":1266,"images":1267,"translations":1268,"content":1269,"translations_news":1270},[51,94],[294],[],[],[1220,1228,1229,1230],[],[],[],[],{"id":788,"name":789,"position":7,"image":790},[],[],[],[],{"id":1277,"status":132,"date_created":1278,"date_updated":1279,"title":1280,"type":1199,"body":1281,"date":1282,"topic":7,"slug":1283,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1284,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1285,"language":290,"image":1286,"translation_of":7,"countries":1297,"tags":1298,"authors":1357,"images":1358,"translations":1359,"content":1360,"translations_news":1361},10640,"2026-06-24T15:49:48.000Z","2026-07-02T09:26:36.000Z","There’s a gap between what laws say and what people do. How is that useful for anti-corruption work?","In episode 37 of the podcast [Sophie au pays des possibles](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.sophieaupaysdespossibles.com\u002F), host and anti-corruption expert Sophie Lemaître conversed with [Claudia Baez Camargo](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout\u002Fteam\u002Fdr-claudia-baez-camargo\u002F), Director of Prevention, Research and Innovation at the Basel Institute on Governance. \n\nClaudia leads a specialised team of researchers who leverage behavioural science, political economy analysis and field research to design context-sensitive anti-corruption strategies. Among others, they advance approaches based on understanding and targeting social norms.\n\nThis Q&A is an edited extract of their discussion on why top-down laws often fail against local realities and how practical, bottom-up solutions can empower citizens to drive real change. \n\n**Sophie Lemaître: What are social norms, and why is it essential to consider them when addressing corruption?**\n\nClaudia Baez Camargo: Essentially, social norms are what we perceive as typical, expected or socially accepted behaviour in a given context. \n\nFor example, if a traffic officer stops you in Mexico – where I was born and grew up – most would offer a bribe to get out of the predicament. Or when accessing healthcare services, people might give a “gift” or bribe before receiving care. If they don't, they fear they won't receive the service or the correct medicine. \n\nEven if they are personally against corruption and know the law forbids it, the social expectation can push them to do it anyway.\n\nUnderstanding these expectations is key to designing effective anti-corruption interventions.\n\n**Sophie: I've heard statements like \"Corruption is part of the culture of this country.\" Can we say some cultures or countries are more corrupt than others?**\n\nClaudia: I've often been told, across Africa, Latin America, the Balkans or Asia, \"Oh, Claudia, it's in our culture. What are we going to do?\" \n\nBut these regions have such vastly different cultures that I doubt culture is the defining factor. In my view, the real drivers are structural. \n\n- First, there are resource constraints: living in poverty and unmet need drives corruption. \n- Second, there are weak state institutions. When the state fails to deliver, it generates incentives to bypass the law just to solve problems, make money or access services. \n\nCulture simply adapts around these realities, absorbing corrupt practices through local names and jokes.\n\nSocial norms apply to concrete, narrow situations – they dictate what we're expected to do. \n\nCulture is something we all have an emotional stake in, so calling a culture corrupt is self-degrading and ignores how rich cultures are. \n\nI prefer to focus on social norms because they provide a concrete entry point where we can actually act and change things.\n\n**Sophie: Have you noticed people saying that addressing corruption is a Western thing?**\n\nClaudia: Government and anti-corruption officials across the board have assimilated the language of good governance, largely because their laws follow UN Conventions. At that level, a Westernised view definitely prevails.\n\nAt the grassroots, it's completely different. In research in Uganda and Tanzania, we used fictional \"vignettes\" to ask citizens about their perceptions of public officials, presenting two characters: \n\n- One who strictly abides by the law and refuses bribes.\n- Another who uses their authority to extract resources, but distributes them to their family and community. Stealing in order to share, like Robin Hood.\n\nAlmost without exception, people said the one stealing and sharing was great, loved and respected, while the law-abiding official was called a traitor who ignored his community responsibilities. \n\nFrom this view, the \"corrupt\" ones are those who fail to use power to look after their network. \n\nUltimately, there is vast room for interpretation regarding what corruption is, depending entirely on social norms, cultural environments and practical needs.\n\n**Sophie: How can we induce behaviour change to create a culture of integrity when the situation involves so many social norms, informal practices and other drivers?**\n\nClaudia: A lot of anti-corruption projects and investments are still very prescriptive. Focusing purely on top-down \"best practices\" and laws creates an \"implementation gap\": countries with excellent laws on paper but terrible results in practice.\n\nTo achieve sustainable change, we must go bottom-up. \n\nWorking at the subnational or municipal level shows a lot of promise, because it allows local governments to engage directly with constituents, jointly identify priorities and co-design solutions. \n\nAs scholar Yuen Yuen Ang argues in her work on [adaptive political economy](https:\u002F\u002Fmuse.jhu.edu\u002Farticle\u002F954433), you cannot expect context-defying behaviours to emerge just because you pass a law. We need to use what is already there – local practices, social networks and community groups – to solve problems sustainably without corruption. \n\nIt does not have to be a textbook Western \"best practice\", as long as it works.\n\n**Sophie: Do you have a success story or promising initiative you could share?**\n\nClaudia: On success stories, once I worked on a project on a remote island in the Philippines where the mayor was a true champion for his community. He even gave his personal mobile number to every citizen. \n\nIt was a very poor community, but because things were decided collectively, their few resources were visibly used in the best interest of everyone.\n\nOn promising initiatives, I'm currently supporting a Swiss-funded project in Moldova that takes this bottom-up approach seriously: its first year is dedicated purely to building trust among local stakeholders. Without trust, people can't collaborate or identify joint priorities. \n\nInvesting in trust, then letting the community take the driver's seat, is essential for sustainability. Otherwise, once funding dries up, everything regresses.\n\n**Sophie: Anti-corruption progress is slow, and we’re experiencing a global backlash. What keeps you motivated?**\n\nClaudia: What I love about my job is going to different countries and speaking with mayors, citizen groups, civil society organisations and the private sector – the real people on the ground whose lives would be transformed if there were less corruption.\n\nThat's what motivates me. Corruption remains a devastating barrier to development and poverty reduction. We often hear we need to \"raise awareness\", but that isn't true; in almost every context, people already know what's corrupt, suffer from it and dislike it.\n\nWe simply cannot give up. The climate can be demotivating, but if we're passive spectators, we can say goodbye to the institutions we've fought for. With our actions, we can intervene and change the course of events.\n\n**Sophie: One final question: how can we as individual citizens play a role in fighting corruption?**\n\nClaudia: First, by understanding our duties. Good governance is fundamentally linked to democracy, and whether you live in an established or fragile democracy, the legal framework almost always gives citizens instruments to engage with their representatives.\n\nIf we normalise using these tools to question authority and demand accountability, we strengthen the rule of law and put corrupt actors under scrutiny. If enough people do this, a lot can change.\n\n## Learn more\n\n::: links\n\n- [Quick Guide: Social norms and corruption](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fquick-guide-10-social-norms-and-corruption\u002F)\n-  [Research Case Study: Harnessing behavioural approaches against corruption](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fresearch-case-5\u002F)\n- [Blog – Bridging the gap: How behavioural science can strengthen anti-corruption and crime prevention](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fbridging-the-gap-how-behavioural-science-can-strengthen-anti-corruption-and-crime-prevention-2809\u002F)\n- [Article – Corruption and Social Norms: A New Arrow in the Quiver](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fcorruption-and-social-norms-new-arrow-quiver\u002F)\n- [Episode 37 of *Sophie au pays des possibles*](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.sophieaupaysdespossibles.com\u002F37-normes-sociales-corruption)\n:::\n","2026-07-02","podcast-interview-sophie-lemaitre-social-norms",[51,94],[294],{"id":1287,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1288,"filename_download":1289,"title":1290,"type":1291,"created_on":1292,"modified_on":1293,"charset":7,"filesize":1294,"width":1295,"height":336,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1296,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1293},"3920eb09-db0e-48e7-8a49-8b841e448232","3920eb09-db0e-48e7-8a49-8b841e448232.png","Social norms Q&A website thumbnail.png","Social Norms Q&a Website 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prevention",{"id":1308,"news_id":1344,"tags_id":1354},{"id":1277,"status":132,"user_created":324,"date_created":1278,"user_updated":324,"date_updated":1279,"title":1280,"type":1199,"body":1281,"image":1287,"date":1282,"topic":7,"slug":1283,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1345,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1346,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1347,"tags":1348,"authors":1349,"images":1350,"translations":1351,"content":1352,"translations_news":1353},[51,94],[294],[],[1300,1306,1307,1308],[],[],[],[],[],{"id":1355,"name":1356},1309,"Informality",[],[],[],[],[],{"id":1363,"status":132,"date_created":1364,"date_updated":1365,"title":1366,"type":1199,"body":1367,"date":1368,"topic":7,"slug":1369,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1370,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1371,"language":290,"image":1372,"translation_of":7,"countries":1383,"tags":1384,"authors":1455,"images":1468,"translations":1469,"content":1470,"translations_news":1471},10633,"2026-06-06T14:25:32.000Z","2026-07-02T09:50:06.000Z","Corruption in the age of networks, data and influence – does the EU's new Anti-Corruption Directive rise to the challenge?","_This article by [Dr Jacopo Costa](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fabout\u002Fteam\u002Fdr-jacopo-costa\u002F) is one of two Basel Institute commentaries on the EU's new Anti-Corruption Directive._\n\n_While the [companion piece by Rita Simões](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Feu-directive-enforcement) examines the directive's legal and institutional implications, this article takes a political economy perspective. It considers what the directive reveals about changing understandings of corruption, how corruption risks are evolving in an increasingly interconnected and technology-driven environment, and where future EU anti-corruption efforts may need to focus._\n\n_The key message is that the directive represents an important advance in legal harmonisation, but that effective anti-corruption policy will also require stronger strategic thinking, greater use of data and technology, and closer attention to emerging corruption risks linked to procurement, border security and financial infrastructure._\n\nApril 2026, the European Union formally adopted [Directive 2026\u002F1021](https:\u002F\u002Feur-lex.europa.eu\u002Feli\u002Fdir\u002F2026\u002F1021\u002Foj\u002Feng) on combatting corruption. Following years of negotiations, political disagreements and institutional bargaining, the EU now has a comprehensive anti-corruption framework establishing common definitions, offences, sanctions and preventive measures across its member states.\n\nThis is a landmark achievement. But it would be a mistake to view the directive as the culmination of the European anti-corruption journey.\n\nIn fact, its adoption marks the beginning of a much larger challenge: turning a legal framework into an effective EU Anti-Corruption Strategy that can address the evolving forms of corruption emerging in an increasingly complex geopolitical and technological landscape.\n\n## Why the directive matters\n\nFor years, the EU lacked a coherent anti-corruption framework. Although member states had their own legislation, there were significant differences in how corruption offences were defined, investigated and punished.\n\nThese discrepancies created loopholes that could be exploited by corrupt individuals and hindered cross-border cooperation between national authorities.\n\nThe new directive aims to address these issues by introducing common minimum standards across the EU. In particular, it:\n\n-   harmonises the definitions of bribery in the public and private sectors, trading in influence, misappropriation, obstruction of justice, illicit enrichment and the concealment of criminal proceeds;\n-   introduces common standards for criminal sanctions, corporate liability, statutes of limitation, whistleblower protection, anti-corruption strategies and specialised anti-corruption bodies; and\n-   broadens the definition of public officials to encompass not only national officeholders, but also senior EU officials and individuals performing public duties on behalf of public institutions. This reflects the reality of contemporary governance, where public services are increasingly delivered through hybrid public–private arrangements.\n\nIt is the most ambitious attempt yet to establish a shared European anti-corruption framework.\n\n## A more modern understanding of corruption\n\nOne of the directive's most significant strengths is its recognition that corruption is not confined to the traditional notion of an envelope stuffed with cash being exchanged.\n\nWe welcome this change in perspective greatly, because our research demonstrates clearly that contemporary [corruption is increasingly networked, sophisticated and relational](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fblog\u002Fcorruption-complex-adaptive-network). It often relies on intermediaries, influence brokers, hidden financial channels, luxury gifts, preferential treatment, future career opportunities and informal exchanges of favours.\n\nIncluding offences such as trading in influence, illicit enrichment, concealing criminal proceeds and aiding or abetting corruption schemes shows an understanding of how corruption operates in modern societies.\n\nThis evolution is important because anti-corruption frameworks often struggle to keep up with the evolving nature of corruption. The directive is a valuable attempt to address this issue and close the resulting gap.\n\n## The price of political compromise\n\nLegislation is never produced in isolation from politics. Significant disagreements emerged among EU institutions and member states during the adoption process. Several governments expressed concerns about subsidiarity and the potential consequences of criminalising particular behaviours.\n\nSo, the final directive is less ambitious than the original proposal.\n\nOne example concerns the offence previously known as “abuse of office”. Following intense political resistance, particularly from countries such as Germany and Italy, the final text replaced it with the more cautious formulation of “unlawful exercise of public functions”. The compromise facilitated agreement, but introduced ambiguity that could hinder enforcement.\n\nSimilarly, criminal sanctions and limitation periods were reduced during negotiations. Maximum prison sentences were reduced, and statutes of limitation were scaled back considerably compared to earlier drafts.\n\nThese compromises highlight a recurring dilemma in policymaking not only in Europe but everywhere: achieving consensus often necessitates compromising on ambition. The result is a directive that establishes a common baseline, yet leaves considerable room for interpretation among member states.\n\n## The missing security lens\n\nPerhaps the most significant limitation of the directive is its relatively little guidance on what anti-corruption efforts should look like in today's rapidly changing security environment.\n\nThis is because corruption is increasingly also a geopolitical and security issue. Foreign influence operations, sanctions evasion schemes, strategic corruption, illicit financial networks, organised crime infiltration and the manipulation of critical supply chains all represent corruption-related risks affecting European security and resilience.\n\nYet these challenges remain largely outside the directive's core focus. There is a risk that anti-corruption efforts will continue to focus on traditional forms of misconduct while underestimating emerging threats linked to geopolitical competition and hybrid forms of influence.\n\n## The technology gap\n\nConsidering the hype around artificial intelligence in society generally, the most striking omission in the directive is the limited attention devoted to technological innovation. Over the past decade, governments, international organisations and researchers have been exploring how artificial intelligence, big data analytics, risk indicators, predictive modelling and open-source intelligence can bolster anti-corruption initiatives.\n\nTechnology is now essential for identifying suspicious procurement patterns, pinpointing conflicts of interest, tracing illicit financial flows and exposing corruption networks. Yet the directive contains almost no strategic vision regarding the role of technology in anti-corruption governance, which is surprising.\n\nResearch conducted under the EU-funded [FALCON project](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F) – of which the Basel Institute is a consortium member – demonstrates that effective anti-corruption systems are increasingly dependent on digital infrastructures capable of collecting, integrating, analysing and cross-referencing large volumes of information. Without these capabilities, many corruption risks remain invisible until significant damage has already occurred.\n\nIt’s important to stress that adopting new technologies – purchasing software, etc. – is the easy part. EU states also need to create the institutional and data infrastructures that allow these technologies to function effectively. Digitisation, interoperability, standardised datasets, machine-readable information and cross-border information sharing are all prerequisites for the next generation of anti-corruption systems.\n\n## Three areas that deserve greater attention\n\nFrom our research in the following areas, we can say for sure that they deserve particular attention in the EU’s Anti-Corruption Strategy and future initiatives:\n\n**1\\. Public procurement**\n\nPublic procurement remains one of the sectors most vulnerable to corruption. This issue is exacerbated by [Europe's increased investment in defence](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Foperational-credibility-is-a-strategic-asset-in-the-defence-industry-what-does-that-mean-for-ukraine-and-its-partners-2965\u002F), critical infrastructure, energy security, technological innovation and strategic industrial policies.\n\n[Central priorities](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Fhigh-level-corruption-analysis-schemes-costs-and-policy-recommendations) should include strengthening transparency, reducing direct awards, improving oversight of sub-threshold contracts, and introducing AI-based risk assessment tools.\n\n**2\\. Border governance**\n\nManaging borders and customs procedures is another critical challenge, as research at the [Port of Rotterdam](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fhow-corruption-helps-drug-traffickers-adapt-to-strengthened-border-enforcement-2848\u002F) and the [Kapitan Andreevo crossing](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fnews\u002Fhow-stronger-borders-can-create-smarter-corruption-lessons-from-one-of-europes-most-strategic-border-crossings-2972\u002F) demonstrates. Corruption at the border facilitates a wide range of criminal activities, including smuggling, trafficking, evasion of sanctions, tax fraud and the movement of illicit goods.\n\nGreater automation, data integration and harmonisation of [border management systems](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fresources\u002Fpublications\u002Frecommendations-combatting-border-corruption-falcon-policy-brief) across member states could significantly reduce opportunities for corruption and strengthen the EU's capacity to detect emerging threats.\n\n**3\\. Financial infrastructures**\n\nModern corruption relies heavily on [financial infrastructure](https:\u002F\u002Flink.springer.com\u002Farticle\u002F10.1007\u002Fs10610-024-09591-z). Complex financial networks, shell companies, professional intermediaries, offshore structures and, increasingly, cryptoassets can facilitate the movement and concealment of illicit funds.\n\nThe future of anti-corruption policy hinges on strengthening the links between anti-corruption and anti-money laundering frameworks, and on developing new approaches that can address digital financial ecosystems.\n\n## Will the EU’s Anti-Corruption Strategy help put the directive into action?\n\nThe adoption of Directive 2026\u002F1021 sends an important message that corruption remains a priority issue for the European Union. The directive establishes a much-needed common foundation and introduces valuable innovations to improve both prevention and enforcement. It provides a stronger legal framework than the fragmented system that existed previously.\n\nBut legal harmonisation alone will not be enough. The directive's effectiveness will ultimately depend on how member states implement its provisions, and on whether the European Union can develop a broader strategic vision capable of addressing emerging corruption risks.\n\nThis is where the forthcoming EU Anti-Corruption Strategy could play a decisive role. To be effective and not just a paper exercise, it must be adaptive, technology-driven and security-conscious. This strategy must respond to current corruption and anticipate its potential evolution.\n\nAnd it needs to be based on a participative process that considers the valuable research and perspectives of civil society organisations, academics and others outside of government.\n\nIf the directive provides the legal architecture, the strategy can provide the direction. Together, they could form the basis of a more adaptive and forward-looking European anti-corruption framework – one that is able to keep pace with a rapidly changing world.","2026-06-07","eu-directive-political-lens",[51,94],[294],{"id":1373,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1374,"filename_download":1375,"title":1376,"type":174,"created_on":1377,"modified_on":1378,"charset":7,"filesize":1379,"width":1380,"height":1381,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":1376,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1382,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1378},"daa620e4-883a-414b-9422-156b0bf16c2b","daa620e4-883a-414b-9422-156b0bf16c2b.webp","EU border crossing_Jacopo blog.webp","The EU's borders are vulnerable to corruption, and deserve a prominent place in the EU's Anti-Corruption Strategy.","2026-06-06T14:30:40.000Z","2026-06-08T11:45:34.000Z",387454,1536,1024,{},[],[1385,1405,1417,1429,1443],{"id":1386,"news_id":1387,"tags_id":1402},6012,{"id":1363,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1364,"user_updated":323,"date_updated":1365,"title":1366,"type":1199,"body":1367,"image":1373,"date":1368,"topic":7,"slug":1369,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1388,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1389,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1390,"tags":1391,"authors":1396,"images":1398,"translations":1399,"content":1400,"translations_news":1401},[51,94],[294],[],[1386,1392,1393,1394,1395],6013,6015,6016,6019,[1397],1381,[],[],[],[],{"id":1403,"name":1404},879,"Money 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financial flows",{"id":1395,"news_id":1444,"tags_id":1454},{"id":1363,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1364,"user_updated":323,"date_updated":1365,"title":1366,"type":1199,"body":1367,"image":1373,"date":1368,"topic":7,"slug":1369,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1445,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1446,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1447,"tags":1448,"authors":1449,"images":1450,"translations":1451,"content":1452,"translations_news":1453},[51,94],[294],[],[1386,1392,1393,1394,1395],[1397],[],[],[],[],{"id":1341,"name":1342},[1456],{"id":1397,"news_id":1457,"authors_id":1467},{"id":1363,"status":132,"user_created":1222,"date_created":1364,"user_updated":323,"date_updated":1365,"title":1366,"type":1199,"body":1367,"image":1373,"date":1368,"topic":7,"slug":1369,"activity":7,"nid":7,"topics":1458,"activities":7,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":1459,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1460,"tags":1461,"authors":1462,"images":1463,"translations":1464,"content":1465,"translations_news":1466},[51,94],[294],[],[1386,1392,1393,1394,1395],[1397],[],[],[],[],{"id":537,"name":538,"position":539,"image":540},[],[],[],[],{"id":1473,"status":132,"date_created":313,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"date":1477,"topic":1478,"slug":1481,"activity":1482,"nid":1484,"topics":1485,"activities":1486,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"language":290,"image":1487,"translation_of":7,"countries":1489,"tags":1530,"authors":1575,"images":1590,"translations":1591,"content":1592,"translations_news":1593},10615,"2026-06-24T13:31:49.000Z","How stronger borders can create smarter corruption: lessons from one of Europe's most strategic border crossings","When Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007, many believed it would lead to more secure, transparent and less corrupt borders. New regulations, infrastructure modernisation and digitalised customs procedures all followed. European standards and money arrived together.\n\nYet corruption did not disappear at the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint, the main land crossing between Bulgaria and Türkiye and one of the busiest gateways between Europe and Asia. Instead, it evolved.\n\nThis is the central finding of a recent [article](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fevolution-corruption-and-crimes-kapitan-andreevo-border-checkpoint-impact-eu-accession) by the Prevention, Research and Innovation team of the Basel Institute on Governance – Dr Jacopo Costa, Dr Claudia Baez Camargo, Noémi Jäger and Dr Saba Kassa – published in the _Journal of Illicit Trade, Financial Crime, and Compliance_.\n\nThe article examines how criminal networks, smugglers, businesses and corrupt officials adapted to Bulgaria’s EU integration. It illustrates how corruption behaves like an adaptive ecosystem: when regulations and border control technologies change, corruption changes with them.\n\n## A border built for opportunity – legal and illegal\n\nBorder spaces concentrate discretionary power in the hands of customs officers, border guards, inspectors and regulators, while bringing together also traders, transport companies, migrants, smugglers, criminal groups and political actors.\n\nKapitan Andreevo is a particularly instructive case due to its strategic location, with thousands of trucks, travellers and goods passing through the border checkpoint daily.\n\nBefore Bulgaria’s EU accession, corruption at the checkpoint was already deeply embedded. The 1990s brought economic crisis, shortages of consumer goods, weak state capacity and rapidly expanding informal markets. Smuggling became a profitable survival strategy.\n\nBorder officials could be bribed to overlook undeclared goods, counterfeit products and tax evasion. Duty-free shops in the \"no man's land\" between Bulgaria and Türkiye became hubs for smuggling cigarettes, alcohol and petroleum products.\n\n## Corruption operated at multiple levels:\n\n*   everyday exchanges between traders, drivers and officials, often based on long-standing personal relationships, at the lower level\n*   connections between politicians, senior civil servants, business elites and organised crime at the higher level.\n\nSmuggling routes required political protection. Profits flowed upward through patronage systems.\n\n## EU accession changed the rules of the game\n\nBulgaria’s EU accession radically transformed the legal and institutional environment. The country had to align its customs regulations, VAT rules, excise tax systems, phytosanitary standards and border procedures with EU standards – a gradual process requiring significant investment. The reforms affected almost every aspect of border governance.\n\nCustoms procedures became increasingly digitalised. New systems such as the VAT Information Exchange System (VIES) and the Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS) improved cross-border monitoring.\n\nPhytosanitary and veterinary inspections became stricter. Migration controls tightened through alignment with Schengen rules and access to systems like the Schengen Information System (SIS) and international databases of stolen documents and vehicles.\n\nMeanwhile, new border control technologies – X-ray machines, scanners, thermal cameras and risk-analysis tools – expanded the state’s capacity to detect illicit activity.\n\nFrom a policy perspective, this appeared to be a modernisation success story. But criminal systems rarely remain static when the environment changes.\n\n## Corruption did not decline – it adapted\n\nThe most striking finding is that stronger controls often increase the strategic value of corruption.\n\nAfter EU accession, crossing the border illegally became more difficult, risky and expensive. Corruption became necessary not only to speed up procedures but to bypass sophisticated control and regulatory systems.\n\nIn other words, modernisation transformed the function of corruption: Criminal actors began targeting specialised procedures, such as food safety inspections, VAT systems, automated license plate recognition, laboratory testing and digital customs controls.\n\n## VAT fraud and the manipulation of digital systems\n\nVAT fraud illustrates this adaptation clearly. Within the EU, exports are often subject to a VAT rate of 0 (zero) percent, which means companies can reclaim any VAT they have already paid domestically. Criminal actors exploited this through \"carousel fraud\" schemes involving fictitious transactions chains.\n\nAt Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint, for example, corruption allegedly enabled traders to manipulate customs procedures. One method involved corrupt officials manually entering fake truck registrations into customs systems to simulate border crossings, enabling fraudulent VAT refunds for exports that never occurred.\n\nEven more revealing was the manipulation of automated license plate recognition: corrupt actors reportedly disabled automated recognition and manually entered altered plates using Cyrillic characters resembling Latin letters, allowing smugglers to bypass alerts and inspections.\n\nThis illustrates a pattern seen in many modern corruption systems: digitalisation does not automatically eliminate corruption. Instead, corruption turns towards the technological systems themselves.\n\n## Food safety, privatisation and rent-seeking\n\nEU food safety and phytosanitary regulations created new bottlenecks and forms of discretionary authority. The research describes two recurring manipulation strategies:\n\n*   selective sampling during inspections, where officials took samples only from \"clean\" sections of shipments; and\n*   falsification of laboratory tests to certify unsafe products as compliant.\n\nThese risks increased after some border functions were outsourced to private companies. At Kapitan Andreevo, food testing, parking operations and vehicle disinfection were privatised. This reform, intended to increase efficiency, allegedly created new opportunities for rent extraction.\n\nThe controversy surrounding Eurolab 2011, which reportedly obtained monopolistic control over food safety testing under questionable legal arrangements became emblematic of these tensions.\n\nThe broader implication: privatisation of public functions does not necessarily reduce corruption risks. It can shift them into hybrid public-private arrangements where accountability is weaker and oversight is more fragmented.\n\n## The rise of “routinised” corruption\n\nThe study highlights the increased organisation of corruption itself. Today, no single official can independently guarantee a smuggling route. Procedures involve multiple agencies, overlapping inspections and layered oversight.\n\nAs a result, corruption evolved towards collective coordination. Customs officers, border guards, supervisors, intermediaries and sometimes political actors participate in networks where bribes are pooled and redistributed.\n\nThese schemes resemble coordinated organisational systems with revenue-sharing mechanisms, internal hierarchies and protection structures rather than isolated rogue actors.\n\nThis reflects an important conceptual change: border corruption can function as an embedded institutional ecosystem sustained through cooperation, mutual dependence and political protection.\n\n## Drug trafficking: when corruption becomes too risky\n\nInterestingly, corruption is not always the preferred strategy. In drug trafficking, for example, the risks are dramatically higher. Border officials caught facilitating drug trafficking could face severe criminal penalties, including organised crime charges and lengthy prison sentences.\n\nAs a result, traffickers increasingly invest in sophisticated concealment methods. One example is the \"twin trucks\" strategy: several nearly identical trucks carrying similar cargo cross the border simultaneously during heavy traffic, with only one of them containing drugs. Since inspection capacity is limited, the probability is high that the \"clean\" trucks are checked while the drug shipment passes undetected.\n\nThis shows that corruption and criminality do not always go hand in hand. Sometimes, stronger anti-corruption measures push criminals towards deception and concealment rather than bribery.\n\n## The bigger lesson: criminal systems are adaptive\n\nThe case study of the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing is not just about Bulgaria. Policymakers often assume that more technology, controls and regulation will automatically reduce corruption and illicit trade.\n\nBut criminal systems and corruption adapt. Informal networks reorganise around the vulnerabilities created by reforms. Every regulatory innovation creates new incentives, bottlenecks and opportunities for exploitation.\n\nThis does not mean reforms are useless. Many EU measures have clearly strengthened border management. However, reforms must be designed with an understanding of adaptive behaviour. Otherwise, states risk producing unintended consequences: stronger incentives for bribery, use of alternative trafficking routes, technological manipulation, new forms of collusion or opaque privatisation structures.\n\nI and my co-authors argue for a more integrated approach that combines anti-corruption and anti-crime strategies. We also emphasise the importance of anticipatory governance and foresight-oriented policymaking that try to predict how illicit actors will respond to institutional changes before reforms are implemented.\n\nThis may be the most important lesson from Kapitan Andreevo. Borders are not static lines defended by static institutions against static threats. They are evolving ecosystems where states, markets, technologies and criminal actors constantly adapt to one another.\n\n## Learn more\n\n*   Access the full article, “[The Evolution of Corruption and Crimes at Kapitan Andreevo Border Checkpoint: The Impact of EU Accession](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fevolution-corruption-and-crimes-kapitan-andreevo-border-checkpoint-impact-eu-accession)”.\n*   Read our [Quick Guide 38 to border corruption](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fqg38) for a short introduction.\n*   Read our Working Paper 58, “Corruption as a facilitator of drug trafficking in the port of Rotterdam” for a related analysis.","2026-05-26",[1479,1480],"Prevention"," Research and Innovation","how-stronger-borders-can-create-smarter-corruption-lessons-from-one-of-europes-most-strategic-border-crossings-2972",[1483],"Insights",2972,[94],[1483],{"id":310,"storage":135,"filename_disk":311,"filename_download":173,"title":312,"type":174,"created_on":313,"modified_on":314,"charset":7,"filesize":315,"width":177,"height":316,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":317,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1488,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":313},{},[1490,1511],{"id":1491,"news_id":1492,"countries_id":1510},7814,{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1495,"slug":1481,"activity":1496,"nid":1484,"topics":1497,"activities":1498,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1499,"tags":1501,"authors":1505,"images":1506,"translations":1507,"content":1508,"translations_news":1509},"03bebfd8-0b40-4a2a-820d-b9d9c13b9de6","b0662e2a-864d-4888-a1b7-4342b7570b30",[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],7815,[1502,1503,1504],6003,6005,6006,[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":104,"name":372,"code":373,"latitude":374,"longitude":375},{"id":1500,"news_id":1512,"countries_id":1524},{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1513,"slug":1481,"activity":1514,"nid":1484,"topics":1515,"activities":1516,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1517,"tags":1518,"authors":1519,"images":1520,"translations":1521,"content":1522,"translations_news":1523},[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],[1502,1503,1504],[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":1525,"name":1526,"code":1527,"latitude":1528,"longitude":1529},220,"Turkey","TR",38.96375,35.24332,[1531,1545,1559],{"id":1502,"news_id":1532,"tags_id":1544},{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1533,"slug":1481,"activity":1534,"nid":1484,"topics":1535,"activities":1536,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1537,"tags":1538,"authors":1539,"images":1540,"translations":1541,"content":1542,"translations_news":1543},[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],[1502,1503,1504],[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":413,"name":414},{"id":1503,"news_id":1546,"tags_id":1558},{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1547,"slug":1481,"activity":1548,"nid":1484,"topics":1549,"activities":1550,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1551,"tags":1552,"authors":1553,"images":1554,"translations":1555,"content":1556,"translations_news":1557},[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],[1502,1503,1504],[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":432,"name":433},{"id":1504,"news_id":1560,"tags_id":1572},{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1561,"slug":1481,"activity":1562,"nid":1484,"topics":1563,"activities":1564,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1565,"tags":1566,"authors":1567,"images":1568,"translations":1569,"content":1570,"translations_news":1571},[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],[1502,1503,1504],[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":1573,"name":1574},1374,"Law enforcement",[1576],{"id":1341,"news_id":1577,"authors_id":1589},{"id":1473,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":313,"user_updated":1494,"date_updated":1474,"title":1475,"type":1199,"body":1476,"image":310,"date":1477,"topic":1578,"slug":1481,"activity":1579,"nid":1484,"topics":1580,"activities":1581,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1582,"tags":1583,"authors":1584,"images":1585,"translations":1586,"content":1587,"translations_news":1588},[1479,1480],[1483],[94],[1483],[1491,1500],[1502,1503,1504],[1341],[],[],[],[],{"id":537,"name":538,"position":539,"image":540},[],[],[],[],{"id":1595,"status":132,"date_created":1596,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"date":1108,"topic":1600,"slug":1601,"activity":1602,"nid":1605,"topics":1606,"activities":1607,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"language":290,"image":1608,"translation_of":7,"countries":1614,"tags":1615,"authors":1632,"images":1633,"translations":1634,"content":1635,"translations_news":1779},10607,"2026-04-15T22:45:18.000Z","2026-06-24T13:39:46.000Z","Corruption is a complex, adaptive network. What does this mean for anti-corruption policy and practice?","Corruption is not just a collection of isolated acts by individuals. It is a complex, adaptive system that evolves in response to efforts to control it. And seeing it this way opens up new possibilities to tackle it more effectively.\n\nThis was the central message of a recent Basel Institute on Governance research webinar exploring how corruption evolves and what this means for designing interventions that remain effective over time.\n\nTwo senior researchers from the Basel Institute's Prevention, Research and Innovation – Dr Claudia Baez Camargo and Dr Jacopo Costa – were joined by Dr Maria Nizzero, Head of Sanctions Policy at UK Finance and Associate Research Fellow at RUSI, to explore corruption's networked nature and its implications.\n\nThese implications are practical as much as conceptual. Understanding corruption as a networked, adaptive system changes how corruption, organised crime, sanctions evasion and related threats need to be addressed in practice.\n\n## Corruption as a dynamic system\n\nA recent [academic paper](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fconceptualizing-evolution-corruption-empirical-analysis-italy) by Dr Baez Camargo and Dr Costa highlights a key gap in how corruption is typically analysed. While it is widely accepted that corrupt and criminal strategies change over time, the mechanisms driving that change have received far less attention.\n\nTheir analytical framework suggests that corruption evolves through changes in the behaviour of individuals within networks, shaped by shifts in the broader environment. These shifts may include stronger enforcement, legal and regulatory reforms, technological developments, or wider political and economic change. When new strategies prove effective, they spread across networks through collaboration, brokerage and imitation.\n\nA case study of Italy illustrates this process. In the early 1990s, corruption operated through relatively centralised, pyramidal structures linked to political parties. Over time, following scandals, reforms and increased scrutiny, this system became more fragmented and decentralised. Corrupt practices moved away from formalised exchanges and became more networked, informal and embedded in relationships.\n\nThe outcome was not less corruption, but different corruption.\n\nAs Dr Costa noted, corruption and anti-corruption are engaged in an “uninterrupted dance”, in which “very often, corrupt actors are two steps ahead of us”.\n\n## The concept of the “kleptocratic enterprise”\n\nLooking at corruption through a network lens also opens up new ways of thinking about how to tackle it.\n\n[Research by Dr Nizzero and co-authors](https:\u002F\u002Fgiace.org\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F01\u002FGIACE_Kleptocratic-Enterprises_NizzeroHeathershawMayne.pdf) Professor John Heathershaw and Professor Tom Mayne highlights the persistent challenges of asset recovery and enforcement in cases of large-scale corruption. Illicit wealth is often concealed through complex ownership structures, dispersed across jurisdictions and distanced from its original source over time. Legal frameworks may exist, but applying them effectively remains difficult.\n\nA key part of the problem lies in the role of professional service providers. Lawyers, accountants, real estate actors, company service providers and others help move, manage and shield assets. These actors often operate across borders and may serve a wide range of clients, including both organised crime groups and politically exposed individuals.\n\nThis has led to the idea of a “kleptocratic enterprise”: a networked system in which clients demand services such as concealment and asset protection, and a range of actors supply those services. Viewing corruption in this way shifts attention towards patterns of conduct, relationships and enabling structures.\n\nIt also suggests that tools used to tackle organised crime, such as anti-racketeering or anti-mafia approaches, may offer useful insights. These frameworks often focus on networks rather than individuals, combine multiple legal tools and allow for a broader understanding of harm, including the impact on society.\n\nAt the same time, responses must remain grounded in due process and the rule of law. Stronger measures can create new risks, including displacement of illicit activity to other jurisdictions or unintended consequences linked to overreach. The challenge is to expand the toolkit without compromising core legal principles.\n\n## When enforcement creates new risks\n\nField research by the Basel Institute under the EU-funded [FALCON project](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F) shows how quickly corrupt and criminal networks adapt to enforcement pressure.\n\nAt the [Port of Rotterdam](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58), increased inspections and surveillance aimed at tackling drug trafficking made insider access more valuable. Corruption became a critical mechanism for bypassing strengthened controls, illustrating how enforcement can shift incentives in ways that reinforce the role of corruption.\n\nAt the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing between Bulgaria and Turkey, changes linked to EU accession, including new regulatory frameworks and stronger border controls, were followed by new forms of corruption and criminal activity. These included routinised extractive practices, shifts in smuggling strategies and the emergence of new actors.\n\nAcross both cases, the pattern is consistent. Measures designed to reduce corruption and illicit activity can reshape how those activities are organised and carried out.\n\n## Why networks are so resilient\n\nOne reason corruption adapts so effectively lies in the nature of the networks themselves.\n\nAs Dr Baez Camargo explains, enforcement-focused approaches can become a “whack-a-mole game” when underlying incentives remain unchanged. Efforts to close one avenue often lead to the emergence of another.\n\n[Informal networks](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fquick-guide-23-informal-networks-and-anti-corruption) are particularly resilient because they are built on more than financial exchange. Trust, personal relationships and shared social norms play a central role. These elements are difficult to detect, harder to regulate and highly adaptable.\n\nCriminal and corrupt networks are also flexible and opportunistic. They can shift strategies, routes and methods quickly, drawing on significant resources and expertise. Formal institutions, by contrast, operate within legal and procedural constraints, which can limit their ability to respond at the same pace.\n\n## Towards more adaptive responses\n\nIf corruption behaves like a complex adaptive system, anti-corruption efforts need to reflect that reality.\n\nOne emerging approach is to place greater emphasis on understanding systems rather than focusing narrowly on individual interventions. This involves mapping relationships, incentives and behavioural patterns in much greater depth, and remaining alert to how these evolve over time.\n\nIt also requires a shift away from strictly linear theories of change. Fixed indicators and predefined outcomes can miss important developments, particularly when systems are dynamic and interconnected. A more flexible approach allows practitioners to identify early signals of change, whether positive or negative, and adjust their strategies accordingly.\n\nAs Dr Baez Camargo puts it, “we cannot keep thinking that change is linear”. A better understanding of systems, combined with the ability to detect and respond to change, is essential for staying relevant in rapidly evolving contexts.\n\n## A shift in perspective\n\nTaken together, these insights point to a broader conclusion. Corruption is not static, and responses to it cannot be static either.\n\nUnderstanding corruption as a networked, adaptive system changes how problems are defined and how solutions are designed. It brings greater attention to relationships, incentives and enabling structures. It also highlights the importance of anticipating how systems will respond to interventions.\n\nFor practitioners working on corruption, organised crime or related risks, this shift is increasingly important. Integrating it into programming should help us not only respond more quickly as corruption adapts – i.e. whack the moles more rapidly when they pop up. It should also help us design flexible, creative and context-sensitive interventions that can genuinely disrupt these resilient illicit networks and themselves adapt to remain effective over time.\n\n## Learn more\n\n*   [Conceptualizing the evolution of corruption: an empirical analysis from Italy](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fconceptualizing-evolution-corruption-empirical-analysis-italy), by Dr Jacopo Costa and Dr Claudia Baez Camargo.\n*   [Corruption as a facilitator of drug trafficking in the port of Rotterdam](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58), by Dr Saba Kassa and Dr Jacopo Costa \n*   [The Kleptocratic Enterprise: Lessons from organised crime to target transnational corruption and strengthen asset recovery in the UK](https:\u002F\u002Fgiace.org\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F01\u002FGIACE_Kleptocratic-Enterprises_NizzeroHeathershawMayne.pdf), by Dr Maria Nizzero, Professor John Heathershaw and Professor Tom Mayne\n\n## Webinar recording\n\n\u003Ciframe allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fembed\u002FETQto16U_q4?si=yrjbtCTRmQ5ceTPo\" title=\"YouTube video player\" width=\"560\">\u003C\u002Fiframe>\n\nDisclaimer\n\n_This webinar and summary are part of the FALCON (Fight Against Largescale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project. FALCON is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance, as an associated partner without the right to receive funds directly from the European Research Executive Agency, has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). The contents of this summary are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI._",[1479,1480],"corruption-is-a-complex-adaptive-network-what-does-this-mean-for-anti-corruption-policy-and-practice-2945",[1603,1604],"Events","Research",2945,[94],[1603,1604],{"id":1609,"storage":135,"filename_disk":1610,"filename_download":173,"title":1598,"type":174,"created_on":1596,"modified_on":1596,"charset":7,"filesize":1611,"width":177,"height":1612,"duration":7,"embed":7,"description":7,"location":7,"tags":7,"metadata":1613,"focal_point_x":7,"focal_point_y":7,"tus_id":7,"tus_data":7,"uploaded_on":1596},"af37ba1d-85e1-4724-ab47-4e58056330c6","af37ba1d-85e1-4724-ab47-4e58056330c6.webp",24708,447,{},[],[1616],{"id":1617,"news_id":1618,"tags_id":1631},5619,{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1620,"slug":1601,"activity":1621,"nid":1605,"topics":1622,"activities":1623,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1624,"tags":1625,"authors":1626,"images":1627,"translations":1628,"content":1629,"translations_news":1630},"dfef11db-1bc6-47e9-a61d-93443995484b",[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":432,"name":433},[],[],[],[1636,1653,1671,1689,1707,1725,1743,1761],{"id":65,"collection":1637,"news_id":1638,"item":1650},"text",{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1639,"slug":1601,"activity":1640,"nid":1605,"topics":1641,"activities":1642,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1643,"tags":1644,"authors":1645,"images":1646,"translations":1647,"content":1648,"translations_news":1649},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1651,"text":1652,"class":7,"title":7,"anchor":7},64,"Corruption is not just a collection of isolated acts by individuals. It is a complex, adaptive system that evolves in response to efforts to control it. And seeing it this way opens up new possibilities to tackle it more effectively.\n\nThis was the central message of a recent Basel Institute on Governance research webinar exploring how corruption evolves and what this means for designing interventions that remain effective over time.\n\nTwo senior researchers from the Basel Institute's Prevention, Research and Innovation – Dr Claudia Baez Camargo and Dr Jacopo Costa – were joined by Dr Maria Nizzero, Head of Sanctions Policy at UK Finance and Associate Research Fellow at RUSI, to explore corruption's networked nature and its implications.\n\nThese implications are practical as much as conceptual. Understanding corruption as a networked, adaptive system changes how corruption, organised crime, sanctions evasion and related threats need to be addressed in practice.",{"id":60,"collection":1637,"news_id":1654,"item":1666},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1655,"slug":1601,"activity":1656,"nid":1605,"topics":1657,"activities":1658,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1659,"tags":1660,"authors":1661,"images":1662,"translations":1663,"content":1664,"translations_news":1665},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1667,"text":1668,"class":7,"title":1669,"anchor":1670},65,"A recent [academic paper](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fconceptualizing-evolution-corruption-empirical-analysis-italy) by Dr Baez Camargo and Dr Costa highlights a key gap in how corruption is typically analysed. While it is widely accepted that corrupt and criminal strategies change over time, the mechanisms driving that change have received far less attention.\n\nTheir analytical framework suggests that corruption evolves through changes in the behaviour of individuals within networks, shaped by shifts in the broader environment. These shifts may include stronger enforcement, legal and regulatory reforms, technological developments, or wider political and economic change. When new strategies prove effective, they spread across networks through collaboration, brokerage and imitation.\n\nA case study of Italy illustrates this process. In the early 1990s, corruption operated through relatively centralised, pyramidal structures linked to political parties. Over time, following scandals, reforms and increased scrutiny, this system became more fragmented and decentralised. Corrupt practices moved away from formalised exchanges and became more networked, informal and embedded in relationships.\n\nThe outcome was not less corruption, but different corruption.\n\nAs Dr Costa noted, corruption and anti-corruption are engaged in an “uninterrupted dance”, in which “very often, corrupt actors are two steps ahead of us”.\n","Corruption as a dynamic system","dynamic-system",{"id":53,"collection":1637,"news_id":1672,"item":1684},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1673,"slug":1601,"activity":1674,"nid":1605,"topics":1675,"activities":1676,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1677,"tags":1678,"authors":1679,"images":1680,"translations":1681,"content":1682,"translations_news":1683},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1685,"text":1686,"class":7,"title":1687,"anchor":1688},66,"Looking at corruption through a network lens also opens up new ways of thinking about how to tackle it.\n\n[Research by Dr Nizzero and co-authors](https:\u002F\u002Fgiace.org\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F01\u002FGIACE_Kleptocratic-Enterprises_NizzeroHeathershawMayne.pdf) Professor John Heathershaw and Professor Tom Mayne highlights the persistent challenges of asset recovery and enforcement in cases of large-scale corruption. Illicit wealth is often concealed through complex ownership structures, dispersed across jurisdictions and distanced from its original source over time. Legal frameworks may exist, but applying them effectively remains difficult.\n\nA key part of the problem lies in the role of professional service providers. Lawyers, accountants, real estate actors, company service providers and others help move, manage and shield assets. These actors often operate across borders and may serve a wide range of clients, including both organised crime groups and politically exposed individuals.\n\nThis has led to the idea of a “kleptocratic enterprise”: a networked system in which clients demand services such as concealment and asset protection, and a range of actors supply those services. Viewing corruption in this way shifts attention towards patterns of conduct, relationships and enabling structures.\n\nIt also suggests that tools used to tackle organised crime, such as anti-racketeering or anti-mafia approaches, may offer useful insights. These frameworks often focus on networks rather than individuals, combine multiple legal tools and allow for a broader understanding of harm, including the impact on society.\n\nAt the same time, responses must remain grounded in due process and the rule of law. Stronger measures can create new risks, including displacement of illicit activity to other jurisdictions or unintended consequences linked to overreach. The challenge is to expand the toolkit without compromising core legal principles.","The concept of the “kleptocratic enterprise”","kleptocratic",{"id":20,"collection":1637,"news_id":1690,"item":1702},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1691,"slug":1601,"activity":1692,"nid":1605,"topics":1693,"activities":1694,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1695,"tags":1696,"authors":1697,"images":1698,"translations":1699,"content":1700,"translations_news":1701},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1703,"text":1704,"class":7,"title":1705,"anchor":1706},67,"Field research by the Basel Institute under the EU-funded [FALCON project](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.falcon-horizon.eu\u002F) shows how quickly corrupt and criminal networks adapt to enforcement pressure.\n\nAt the [Port of Rotterdam](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58), increased inspections and surveillance aimed at tackling drug trafficking made insider access more valuable. Corruption became a critical mechanism for bypassing strengthened controls, illustrating how enforcement can shift incentives in ways that reinforce the role of corruption.\n\nAt the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing between Bulgaria and Turkey, changes linked to EU accession, including new regulatory frameworks and stronger border controls, were followed by new forms of corruption and criminal activity. These included routinised extractive practices, shifts in smuggling strategies and the emergence of new actors.\n\nAcross both cases, the pattern is consistent. Measures designed to reduce corruption and illicit activity can reshape how those activities are organised and carried out.","When enforcement creates new risks","new-risks",{"id":18,"collection":1637,"news_id":1708,"item":1720},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1709,"slug":1601,"activity":1710,"nid":1605,"topics":1711,"activities":1712,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1713,"tags":1714,"authors":1715,"images":1716,"translations":1717,"content":1718,"translations_news":1719},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1721,"text":1722,"class":7,"title":1723,"anchor":1724},68,"One reason corruption adapts so effectively lies in the nature of the networks themselves.\n\nAs Dr Baez Camargo explains, enforcement-focused approaches can become a “whack-a-mole game” when underlying incentives remain unchanged. Efforts to close one avenue often lead to the emergence of another.\n\n[Informal networks](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fquick-guide-23-informal-networks-and-anti-corruption) are particularly resilient because they are built on more than financial exchange. Trust, personal relationships and shared social norms play a central role. These elements are difficult to detect, harder to regulate and highly adaptable.\n\nCriminal and corrupt networks are also flexible and opportunistic. They can shift strategies, routes and methods quickly, drawing on significant resources and expertise. Formal institutions, by contrast, operate within legal and procedural constraints, which can limit their ability to respond at the same pace.","Why networks are so resilient","resilience",{"id":55,"collection":1637,"news_id":1726,"item":1738},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1727,"slug":1601,"activity":1728,"nid":1605,"topics":1729,"activities":1730,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1731,"tags":1732,"authors":1733,"images":1734,"translations":1735,"content":1736,"translations_news":1737},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1739,"text":1740,"class":7,"title":1741,"anchor":1742},69,"If corruption behaves like a complex adaptive system, anti-corruption efforts need to reflect that reality.\n\nOne emerging approach is to place greater emphasis on understanding systems rather than focusing narrowly on individual interventions. This involves mapping relationships, incentives and behavioural patterns in much greater depth, and remaining alert to how these evolve over time.\n\nIt also requires a shift away from strictly linear theories of change. Fixed indicators and predefined outcomes can miss important developments, particularly when systems are dynamic and interconnected. A more flexible approach allows practitioners to identify early signals of change, whether positive or negative, and adjust their strategies accordingly.\n\nAs Dr Baez Camargo puts it, “we cannot keep thinking that change is linear”. A better understanding of systems, combined with the ability to detect and respond to change, is essential for staying relevant in rapidly evolving contexts.\n\n### A shift in perspective\n\nTaken together, these insights point to a broader conclusion. Corruption is not static, and responses to it cannot be static either.\n\nUnderstanding corruption as a networked, adaptive system changes how problems are defined and how solutions are designed. It brings greater attention to relationships, incentives and enabling structures. It also highlights the importance of anticipating how systems will respond to interventions.\n\nFor practitioners working on corruption, organised crime or related risks, this shift is increasingly important. Integrating it into programming should help us not only respond more quickly as corruption adapts – i.e. whack the moles more rapidly when they pop up. It should also help us design flexible, creative and context-sensitive interventions that can genuinely disrupt these resilient illicit networks and themselves adapt to remain effective over time.","Towards more adaptive responses","adaptive-responses",{"id":21,"collection":1637,"news_id":1744,"item":1756},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1745,"slug":1601,"activity":1746,"nid":1605,"topics":1747,"activities":1748,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1749,"tags":1750,"authors":1751,"images":1752,"translations":1753,"content":1754,"translations_news":1755},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1757,"text":1758,"class":7,"title":1759,"anchor":1760},70,"*   [Conceptualizing the evolution of corruption: an empirical analysis from Italy](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fconceptualizing-evolution-corruption-empirical-analysis-italy), by Dr Jacopo Costa and Dr Claudia Baez Camargo.\n*   [Corruption as a facilitator of drug trafficking in the port of Rotterdam](https:\u002F\u002Fbaselgovernance.org\u002Fpublications\u002Fwp-58), by Dr Saba Kassa and Dr Jacopo Costa \n*   [The Kleptocratic Enterprise: Lessons from organised crime to target transnational corruption and strengthen asset recovery in the UK](https:\u002F\u002Fgiace.org\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F01\u002FGIACE_Kleptocratic-Enterprises_NizzeroHeathershawMayne.pdf), by Dr Maria Nizzero, Professor John Heathershaw and Professor Tom Mayne","Learn more","learn-more",{"id":22,"collection":1637,"news_id":1762,"item":1774},{"id":1595,"status":132,"user_created":1493,"date_created":1596,"user_updated":1619,"date_updated":1597,"title":1598,"type":1199,"body":1599,"image":1609,"date":1108,"topic":1763,"slug":1601,"activity":1764,"nid":1605,"topics":1765,"activities":1766,"programme":7,"area":7,"websites":7,"translation_of":7,"language":290,"countries":1767,"tags":1768,"authors":1769,"images":1770,"translations":1771,"content":1772,"translations_news":1773},[1479,1480],[1603,1604],[94],[1603,1604],[],[1617],[],[],[],[65,60,53,20,18,55,21,22],[],{"id":1775,"text":1776,"class":7,"title":1777,"anchor":1778},71,"\u003Ciframe allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\u002F\u002Fwww.youtube.com\u002Fembed\u002FETQto16U_q4?si=yrjbtCTRmQ5ceTPo\" title=\"YouTube video player\" width=\"100%\">\u003C\u002Fiframe>\n\nDisclaimer\n\n_This webinar and summary are part of the FALCON (Fight Against Largescale Corruption and Organised Crime Networks) project. FALCON is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Program Grant Agreement ID 101121281. The Basel Institute on Governance, as an associated partner without the right to receive funds directly from the European Research Executive Agency, has received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). The contents of this summary are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the European Research Executive Agency or SERI._","Webinar recording","recording",[],{"Asset Recovery and Enforcement":1781,"Corruption Prevention and Public Governance":1782,"Business Integrity Ethics and Compliance":1783,"Green Corruption":1784,"Public Finance Management":1785,"Ukraine":1786},"\u002Fwork\u002Fenforcement","\u002Fwork\u002Fprevention","\u002Fwork\u002Fbusiness","\u002Fwork\u002Fprogrammes\u002Fgreen-corruption","\u002Fwork\u002Fprogrammes\u002Fpublic-finance-management","\u002Fwork\u002Fprogrammes\u002Fukraine",1788339310249]