By Ongaga Ongaga

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has released its 2024 National Ethics and Corruption Survey, revealing a troubling surge in unethical behavior across public institutions.

The report, compiled from interviews with nearly 6,000 households nationwide, paints a grim picture of a society grappling with entrenched corruption, despite widespread awareness of its consequences.

The survey found that 75.9% of Kenyans understand what constitutes corruption, yet 36.4% reported witnessing unethical conduct in the past year—a sharp increase from 28.3% in 2023.

Bribery remains the most common form of corruption, cited by 52.1% of respondents.

Notably, 30.5% of Kenyans experienced bribery firsthand, and 18.9% were explicitly asked to pay a bribe.

These figures underscore the normalization of corrupt practices in everyday interactions with public institutions.

The Ministry of Interior and National Administration was identified as the most corruption-prone, followed closely by Health, Treasury, Lands, and Education.

The Kenya Police topped the list of unethical agencies, with 48.2% of respondents naming it as a hotspot for corruption.

Other institutions such as the Kenya Wildlife Service and the National Social Security Fund also featured prominently in the list of bribe recipients.

While the average bribe paid in 2024 dropped to Ksh 4,878 from Ksh 11,625 in 2023, the cost of accessing certain services remains alarmingly high.

For instance, securing employment within county governments required an average bribe of Ksh 243,651, while obtaining a national government tender demanded around Ksh 100,000.

Uasin Gishu County recorded the highest share of national bribes at 11.12%, followed by Baringo (6.94%) and Embu (5.54%).

What Kenyans said

Public sentiment about the fight against corruption is overwhelmingly pessimistic.

A staggering 83.3% of Kenyans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, citing the high cost of living, rampant bribery, and poor service delivery as key indicators.

Only 16.7% felt that anti-corruption efforts were yielding positive results.

Despite this, 69.4% of respondents claimed they would not engage in corruption if given the opportunity, though 11.8% admitted to participating in unethical practices over the past year—often driven by desperation for employment or access to essential services.

The culture of silence surrounding corruption remains deeply rooted.

Only 2.8% of those who experienced bribery reported it, and of those cases, nearly 70% saw no action taken.

Most complaints were directed to institutional management or the police, but fear of victimization, lack of access to reporting channels, and skepticism about investigations were cited as major deterrents to reporting.

The EACC’s whistleblower protection mechanisms remain underutilized, prompting renewed calls for the fast-tracking of the Whistleblower Protection Bill.

Media continues to play a critical role in shaping public awareness, with radio being the most relied-upon source of anti-corruption information (73.6%), followed by television (64.6%) and social media (32.6%).

However, the uptake of EACC’s Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) materials declined to 20% in 2024, down from 24.1% the previous year.

Respondents recommended increased public sensitization, broader media engagement, and translation of materials into vernacular languages to improve outreach.

The report has some recommendations aimed at reversing the tide of corruption.

These include enhancing transparency in public service recruitment, promoting ethics education in schools, and strengthening anti-corruption laws and reporting mechanisms.

It has also recommended conducting system audits in high-risk institutions and counties, and fostering public-private partnerships to combat corruption.