Impact of Corruption on Economic Growth in Nigeria

Corruption is an ancient practice that has been traced back to pre-biblical time and made itself known in the ancient civilizations of developed and developing countries. This study empirically investigates the impact of corruption on the growth of Nigerian economy using granger causality and regression techniques. The study used gross domestic product (GDP) as a proxy of economic growth and corruption index as a proxy of corruption in our analysis. The study revealed that the level of corruption in Nigeria over the years has significant negative impact on economic growth in Nigeria. The implication of this study is that economy cannot grow fast without zero tolerance in corruption. The study recommended that the policies that will enhance economic growth are expected to be encouraged in reducing corruption and poverty so that the level of economic growth can be improved. And that the activities or programmes of the anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria such as the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and related Offences Commission (ICPC) should be strengthened. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n6p41