Do Freedom of Information Laws Decrease Corruption

Abstract

International organizations have encouraged countries to adopt Freedom of Information (FOI) laws as a means to increase transparency and thus combat corruption. This article uses the recent introduction of FOI laws in several countries as a natural experiment to determine their effect on corruption perceptions and the quality of governance. Using different corruption perception indices, both at the macro- and micro-level, I find that countries that adopted FOI laws saw an increase in perceived corruption and a decrease in the quality of governance, rather than the expected improvement. This increase in corruption perception seems to take place in the initial years of the reform, with no significant decrease in the long term. Countries with a free press appear to be the ones experiencing the increase. Results are robust throughout different samples and specifications. (JEL D72, D73, H11, K39, K42). The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Yale University. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com, Oxford University Press.