Corruption in Eritrea
[3] Another source stated in 2015 that over the previous decade, corruption had become ingrained in Eritrean everyday life, with bribes required for most government services.
[7] Eritrea was a part of Ethiopia until 1991, when Eritreans won a civil war that had lasted for thirty years and were granted independence.
During the 1990s, the private sector began to flourish and the economy grew significantly, causing many observers in the West to view Eritrea "as a beacon of Africa.
[citation needed] As of 2006, Eritrea had not yet held free elections; the Constitution adopted at the time of independence had not yet been implemented; the president was ruling by decree; the National Assembly had last met in 2002; opposition parties were prohibited, as were civic organizations, the right to assemble, and freedom of the press; the judiciary was inactive; the ruling party, government, and military formed "one single conglomerate of power" with "a low level of transparency."
[9] The increase in state ownership in Eritrea has been critiqued as a step back for economic freedom and for doing business generally, partly because it has caused rising corruption.
The World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Project Index for 2011 ranked Eritrea at 180th, with only three countries, Guinea Bissau, Central African Republic, and Chad, scoring worse.
[citation needed] Nonetheless, economic growth has been very strong since 2011, largely because of country's mining boom, which has placed Eritrea among the fastest growing nations on earth; but corruption has kept this new wealth from reaching as many people as it might have.
Similarly, the country's strict laws about importation and the inconsistency in the granting of exit visas enable customs and immigration officials to profit from bribery and money laundering.
The state's control on the economy allows for little private investment, while extremely low government salaries encourage corruption.
[12][additional citation(s) needed] A 2013 report by Transparency International UK called Eritrea the "most militarised country in Africa," with about 20% of its population in uniform.
The army is not only large but also one of the nine most corrupt armed forces in the world, along with Algeria, Angola, Cameroon, the DRC, Egypt, Libya, Syria, and Yemen.
According to Transparency International UK, there is a possible scheme in place of public funds earmarked for "secret" military purposes in the name of national security which are in truth appropriated illicitly.
This mass religious persecution has provided an opportunity for extensive corruption of a specific kind on the part of ruling-party politicians and military officials, who have arrested suspected Christians under the country's official anti-Christian policy and held them in prisons, unofficial detention centers, and military barracks in exchange for ransom.
[4] Shortly after the aforementioned meeting, the president addressed the country on the 24th anniversary of Eritrean independence, denouncing "deluded and corrupt" state officials who, he charged, amassed wealth illegitimately.
