Controlling corruption in city-states: A comparative study of Hong Kong and Singapore

This comparative study of anti-corruption strategies in Singapore and Hong Kong has four sections. The first two sections focus on the anti-corruption strategies adopted by both city-states with emphasis on the legislative and institutional measures. The third section discusses the similarities and differences in the anti-corruption strategies and evaluates their effectiveness. The final section identifies the six lessons which other countries can learn from the experiences of Singapore and Hong Kong in curbing corruption.Revised version of paper presented at the Third International Conference on Ethics in the Public Service on Corruption in a Changing World: Comparisons, Theories and Controlling Strategies, in Jerusalem, June 6–11, 1993. I would like to thank Professor Ian Scott, Head of the Department of Political Science, University of Hong Kong, for sending me materials on the ICAC and Hong Kong's anti-corruption strategy, and Professor Michael Johnston for his useful comments on the paper.