Stage 7 Expanded Reading
In this stage you are expected to broaden your horizon into the topic of the lecture.Please read the following article carefully.
How Corruption Affects Emerging Economies?
Economies that are afflicted by a high level of corruption,which involves the misuse of power,whether in the form of money or authority,in order to achieve certain goals in illegal,dishonest or unfair ways,are not capable of prospering as fully as those with a low level of corruption.Corrupted economies are just not able to function properly because corruption prevents the natural laws of the economy from functioning freely.As a result,corruption in a nation’s political and economic operations causes its entire society to suffer.According to the studies of the World Bank,the average income in countries with a high level of corruption is about a third of that of countries with a low level of corruption.Also,the infant mortality rate in such countries is about 3 times higher and the literacy rate is 25% lower.Although no country has been able to completely eliminate corruption,studies show that the level of corruption in countries with emerging market economies is much higher than it is in developed countries.Research findings of the World Bank indicate that the regions with developed economies such as North America,Western Europe and Australia are characterized by low levels of corruption.In contrast,a high perception of corruption is reported in almost all countries with emerging economies.
Corruption,which takes the forms of bribery,embezzlement,fraud,nepotism and so on,can adversely impact the economies and societies of affected nations.The following are the common features of most countries with emerging economies that reportedly have a high level of corruption.
To begin with,corrupted countries are often flooded with products and services of artificially high prices and low quality.Corruption,in the way deals are made,contracts are awarded,or economic operations are carried out,leads to monopolies or oligopolies in the economy.Those business owners who can use their connections or money to bribe government officials can manipulate policies and market mechanisms to ensure they are the sole provider of goods or services in the market.Monopolists,who do not have to compete against alternative providers,tend to keep their prices high and are not impelled to improve the quality of goods or services they provide by market forces that would have been in operation if they had significant competition.Embedded in those high prices are also the illegal costs of the corrupt transactions that were necessary to create such a monopoly.If,for example,a home construction company had to pay bribes to officials to be granted licenses for operations,these costs incurred will,of course,be reflected in artificially high housing prices.
In the meantime,corruption creates the problem of inefficient allocation of resources.In the best practice,companies choose their suppliers via tender processes(i.e.request for tender or request for proposal)which serve as mechanisms to enable the selection of suppliers that offer the best combination of price and quality.This ensures the efficient allocation of resources.In corrupted economies,however,the companies that otherwise would not be qualified to win the tenders,are oftentimes awarded projects as a result of unfair or illegal tenders(e.g.tenders that involve kickbacks).This results in excessive expenditure in the execution of projects,and substandard or failed projects,etc.,that lead to overall inefficiency in the use of resources.Public procurement perhaps is most vulnerable to fraud and corruption due to the large size of financial flows involved.It’s estimated that in most countries public procurement constitutes between 15% and 30% of their GDP.
Corrupted economies are also characterized by an uneven distribution of wealth.According to the World Bank data,there is a disproportionately small middle class and significant divergence between the living standards of the upper class and lower class in countries with a high level of corruption.Because most of the country’s capital is aggregated in the hands of oligarchs or persons who back corrupted public officials,most of the created wealth also flows to these individuals.Small entrepreneurs are not widely spread and are usually discouraged because they face unfair competition and illegal pressures by large companies who are connected with government officials.
Rampant corruption,therefore,leads to a low stimulus for technology advancement.Since little confidence can be placed in the legal system of corrupted economies in which legal judgments can be rigged,potential innovators cannot be certain that their invention will be protected by patents and will not be copied by those who are not afraid of being subject to punitive measures by the authorities,because copycats can bribe these authorities.There is thus a disincentive for innovation,and as a result emerging countries are usually the importers of technology,because such technology is not created within their own societies.
Lack of confidence in a corrupt government breeds a shadow economy or shadow market.Small entrepreneurs tend to avoid having their businesses officially registered with tax authorities to avoid taxation.Consequently,the income generated by many businesses exists outside the official economy,and these businesses are not subject to state taxation and are not included in the calculation of the country’s GDP.Another negative effect of shadow businesses is that they usually pay their employees lower wages than the minimum amount designated by the government and they do not provide acceptable working conditions(including appropriate health insurance benefits)for their employees.
Corruption is one of the disincentives for foreign investment.Investors who seek a transparent,fair,and competitive business environment will avoid investing in countries where there is a high level of corruption.Many researchers have found that there is a direct link between the level of corruption in a country and measurements of the competitiveness of its business environment.In their conclusion,corruption eventually results in low attractiveness for foreign investors and international trade.
A working paper of the International Monetary Fund(IMF)published in 2010 shows that corruption has an adverse impact on the quality of education and healthcare that are provided in countries with emerging economies.It is reported that corruption increases the cost of healthcare and education services through illegal and unofficial payments that are made in countries where bribery and connections play an important role in the recruitment and promotion of teachers.As a result,the quality of education decreases.Moreover,corruption in the designation of healthcare providers and recruitment of personnel,as well as the procurement of medical supplies and equipment,in emerging economies gives rise to inadequate healthcare treatment and a substandard,or restricted,medical supply,and therefore lowers the overall quality of healthcare in these countries.
To sum up,most countries with emerging economies suffer from a high level of corruption that slows their overall development.The entire society is affected as a result of the inefficient allocation of resources,the presence of a shadow economy,and low-quality education and healthcare.Corruption thus makes these societies worse off and lowers the living standards of most of their populations.
(Sources:adapted from articles on invespedia.com; International Monetary Fund; World Bank)
Task 1:Reading Comprehension Questions
The following questions are asked based on the above article.Please go back to the article and find the answers.
1.What is corruption according to the article?
2.Why are corrupted countries not capable of prospering as fully as those with a low level of corruption?What evidence is cited to support the point?
3.In what forms is corruption manifested?
4.Why do the products and services in corrupted countries have high prices but low quality?
5.How does corruption cause inefficient allocation of resources?
6.Why does there exist a wide gap between the rich and the poor in corrupted countries?
7.Why are the corrupted countries usually the importers of technology?
8.What effects does a shadow economy create?
9.Why is it difficult for corrupted countries to attract foreign investment?
10.In what ways doe corruption affect an afflicted country’s education and healthcare services?
Task 2:Paraphrasing
Explain in English the underlined words and expressions in the context of the above article.
1.Economies that are afflicted by a high level of corruption,which involves the misuse of power,whether in the form of money or authority,in order to achieve certain goals in illegal,dishonest or unfair ways,are not capable of prospering as fully as those with a low level of corruption.
2.The infant mortality rate in such countries is about 3 times higher and the literacy rate is 25% lower.
3.Corruption,which takes the forms of bribery,embezzlement,fraud,nepotism and so on,can adversely impact the economies and societies of affected nations.
4.Corruption,in the way deals are made,contracts are awarded,or economic operations are carried out,leads to monopolies or oligopolies in the economy.
5.In the best practice,companies choose their suppliers via tender processes(i.e.request for tender or request for proposal)which serve as mechanisms to enable the selection of suppliers that offer the best combination of price and quality.This ensures the efficient allocation of resources.
6.Public procurement perhaps is most vulnerable to fraud and corruption due to the large size of financial flows involved.It’s estimated that in most countries public procurement constitutes between 15% and 30% of their GDP.
7.There is a disproportionately small middle class and significant divergence between the living standards of the upper class and lower class in countries with a high level of corruption.
8.Since little confidence can be placed in the legal system of corrupted economies in which legal judgments can be rigged,potential innovators cannot be certain that their invention will be protected by patents and will not be copied by those who are not afraid of being subject to punitive measures by the authorities,because copycats can bribe these authorities.
9.Lack of confidence in a corrupt government breeds a shadow economy or shadow market.Small entrepreneurs tend to avoid having their businesses officially registered with tax authorities to avoid taxation.
10.Corruption in the designation of healthcare providers and recruitment of personnel,as well as the procurement of medical supplies and equipment,in emerging economies gives rise to inadequate healthcare treatment and a substandard,or restricted,medical supply,and therefore lowers the overall quality of healthcare in these countries.
Task 3:Translation
Read the article again and translate it into Chinese.
阅读文章参考译文：
腐败如何影响新兴经济体的方方面面？
所谓腐败，就是指滥用职权，无论是以金钱还是权力的形式，采用不合法、不诚实、不公平的方式达到既定目的。因此，腐败程度严重的经济体，要比腐败程度较轻的经济体，在发展经济时更难取得全面的繁荣昌盛。由于腐败破坏了自由运行的经济规律，因此，腐败的经济体不可能正常合理地运行。有鉴于此，一旦腐败侵蚀到一国的政治与经济体制，那么，该国的整个社会势必深受其害。据世界银行的研究报告显示，高腐败国家的人均收入约为低腐败国家的三分之一，同时，高腐败国家的婴儿死亡率比后者高出三倍之多，识字率却比后者低25%。虽然世界上没有任何一个国家能够完全根除腐败，但是有研究表明，新兴市场经济国家的腐败程度远远高于发达国家。世界银行的调查还发现，发达经济体地区譬如北美、西欧和澳大利亚等，均以低腐败为特征。相比之下，几乎所有的新兴经济国家都给人以腐败泛滥的印象。
腐败的形式繁多，包括贿赂、贪污、欺诈、裙带关系等等，一国的腐败会影响到其他国家的经济与社会发展，造成恶劣的影响。根据世界银行的报告，高腐败的新兴经济国家普遍存在以下特征：
首先，腐败的国家往往充斥着人为的质劣价高的商品和服务。在交易达成、合同签订或经济运营等方面，腐败会导致经济格局中的垄断或寡头垄断。那些企业老板利用自己的人脉或金钱去贿赂政府官员，从而操控政策的制定与市场机制的运行，确保自己是市场上商品或服务的唯一卖家。由于没有其他卖家的竞争，垄断者往往可以保持垄断高价；同时，由于市场缺乏应有的竞争，垄断者不用煞费苦心去提高产品或服务的质量。为了形成垄断而产生的腐败交易，其非法的成本全打进高昂的价格之中。举个例子，假如一家房地产公司为了取得营业执照而向官员行贿，由此产生的费用必然会反映在虚高的房价当中。
其次，腐败还会造成低效的资源配置。在理想的商务实践中，公司应该通过招标程序（即征求投标或解决方案）来选择供应商。该程序的作用是，确保遴选出能够提供物美价廉产品的供应商，从而达到资源配置的有效性。然而，在腐败的经济体中，那些不具备中标资质的公司，经常会通过不公平或不合法的投标手段（例如暗藏回扣的投标）而赢得项目。这就会造成一般性工程、豆腐渣工程或烂尾工程等在实施过程中的超支，导致了资源配置总体的低效。政府采购由于涉及大量现金流，因此有可能成为诈骗和腐败的高发地带。据估计，在大多数国家，政府采购占到国内生产总值的15%至30%。
此外，腐败经济体的另一个特征是财富分配不均。据世界银行数据显示，在腐败严重的国家，中产阶级的规模小得不成比例，上层社会与下层社会的生活水平有着天壤之别。由于国家的大部分资本都掌握在寡头当权者或支持腐败官员的人手中，因此，新创造出的大部分财富也都被这些人中饱私囊。小企业家并不多见，且居于劣势，因为他们面对的是不公平的竞争以及大企业的非法排挤，而大公司的背后通常是政府官员。
同时，腐败的猖獗阻碍了技术进步。在腐败的经济体中，由于司法判决可以被随意操纵，因此，国民对本国司法体制的信心几乎丧失殆尽。想创新的人不敢保证自己的发明创造会得到专利保护，从而免于被他人抄袭、被他人山寨。由于山寨者可以贿赂执法人员，因此对执法机构的处罚毫无畏惧。创新激励机制的缺乏，导致技术根本无法在本国国内研发出来，因此，新兴经济国家一般都是技术进口国。
对腐败政府的不信任，还会滋生出影子经济或影子市场。为了逃税，小企业主往往不去税务机关注册登记。所以，很多企业的收益都游离在官方经济之外，这些企业不向政府纳税，也不计入本国的国内生产总值。影子企业的另一个负效应是，他们支付给员工的薪水往往低于政府规定的最低工资标准，而且员工的工作条件十分恶劣，包括没有健康保险福利。
再者，腐败还抑制了外商投资。投资客往往寻求的是一个透明、公平、鼓励竞争的商业环境，因此不会前往腐败严重的国家去投资。许多研究人员都发现，一国的腐败程度与该国经商环境中竞争的激烈程度有着直接关联。他们由此得出结论，腐败最终会将外商投资和国际贸易拒之门外。
2010年，国际货币基金组织发表了一个工作报告。报告指出，腐败对新兴经济国家的教育质量与医疗质量，均造成不利的影响。报告中说，在腐败的国家，贿赂与裙带关系能够直接左右教师的招聘和晋升，通过权钱交易，大大增加了医疗和教育服务的成本。因此，教育质量不断下降。同时，在新兴经济体中，腐败频现于指定的医疗机构和医护人员招聘之中，同时也出现在医疗物资与设备的采购当中，直接造成缺医少药、药品劣质等诸多问题，降低了这些国家整体的医疗水平。
总而言之，在大多数新兴经济国家，严重的腐败拖累了经济的整体发展。腐败导致的资源配置低效、影子经济活跃、教育与医疗质量低劣等问题，使得整个社会深受其害。因此，腐败让这些社会每况愈下，降低了该国普通百姓的生活水平。