Water Corruption in Central Asia: A Rapid Review

Abstract

Academic scholarship defines sectoral corruption, namely water corruption one of the main threats to the development of Central Asia. While applying a rapid review, the purpose of this article is to explore the current state of research on water corruption, its various forms, and typologies in different water sectors (such as water supply and sanitation, irrigation, hydropower, and water resources management). Specifically, the research seeks to answer the question of how water corruption in Central Asia is defined and analyzed in academic sources. The research findings suggest that academic studies on water corruption are poorly investigated and lack the analysis of sectoral corruption forms and ways to address it, particularly in Central Asia. A rapid review results demonstrate that while briefly mentioning the systemic and pervasive character of water corruption in Central Asia, academic scholarship evades in-depth studies of this problem. It is possible to notice the deficiency of reviews on water corruption studies not only at the regional but also at a global scale. Therefore, this review is anticipated to have academic and practical implications in identifying gaps in water corruption studies, particularly in Central Asia. However, considering the limitations of the rapid review method, to gain a more profound understanding of the problem of water corruption in the region, this study needs to be complemented in the future by a collection of primary and secondary data in Central Asian countries.