Definition and Measurement of Corruption in the States of the European Union and the Use of Directions for Assessing Corruption Actions in Ukraine

Abstract

The article reveals issues related to corruption, which has a negative impact on social security, public spending, budget deficit, tax collection, vulnerable employment, gender equality and the use of EU funds, and approaches to its measurement. It is noted that corruption is associated with an increase in the level of organized crime, a weakening of the rule of law, a decrease in voter turnout in parliamentary elections and trust in state institutions. It is noted that the pandemic and subsequent socio-economic crises called into question the adequacy of the existing mechanisms for controlling the unprecedented volume of finances within the framework of the EU recovery plan. In this complex context, legal and policy frameworks as well as EU instruments that assess anti-corruption efforts are important at all times. But at the same time, all EU member states, solving this problem, have different approaches and methods of its grouping and measurement. According to the conducted studies, there are currently no corruption-free zones in the EU, as all member states have touched this problem, albeit to varying degrees. The concept of corruption is defined as a broader socio-economic problem that covers a number of issues, namely: conflict of interests; clientelism; various forms of favoritism; influence peddling and other similar forms of behavior. A study of modern statistics of corruption offenses as of the first half of 2023 was conducted, which shows positive developments in Ukraine in the fight against corruption, but at the same time, the rate of violations of financial control requirements remains extremely high. Given the difficulty of directly measuring corruption, various (indirect) indicators have been developed based on the perception or experience of this phenomenon and an attempt to quantify the cost of corruption in the EU. It is noted that the main international study is the Global Corruption Barometer (GCB), which collects data on the experience and perception of corruption around the world since 2003. In 2021, the Global Corruption Barometer (GCB) – EU focused on measurements in EU Member States, which confirmed the widespread perception of corruption in Europe and showed that EU citizens are concerned about the close ties between business and politics. Therefore, in the article, the author examines issues related to the measurement of corruption for the possibility of more accurately forecasting the development of this negative phenomenon in the future and taking appropriate preventive measures.