TNRC Forest Supply Chain Corruption

Image representing TNRC's four focus areas: wildlife, fisheries, forests, and finance

TNRC Guide: Identifying Corruption Risks along a Forest Supply Chain

Designing and implementing conservation and natural resource management initiatives that integrate ways to address the drivers and facilitators of corruption typically start with an analysis of corruption risks. While there is no single answer to the question "what works?", experience shows that countering corruption requires interdependent approaches, and that a range of contextual factors will affect their feasibility. This “journey” outlines corruption risks along a forest product supply chain. The aim is to provide illustrative examples that can help practitioners to “connect the corruption dots” in their own contexts. (This general guide may not provide a comprehensive map of all opportunities for corruption along the many specific supply chains within the forest sector.)

For information on specific anti-corruption approaches and learning, visit the TNRC Knowledge Hub.

Access

Concessions & zoning

! Corruption Risk Concession or special use permit issued in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Re-zoning of non-production areas to forest production areas in return for a bribe or other benefit

Documentation

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other benefits for forged documents or other actions to qualify illegal wood as legal

Local communities

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other collusion with local leaders for access to private lands without authorization from communities or legal authorization

Hiring

Paperwork & working conditions

! Corruption Risk Bribes to field inspection officers to close an eye to illegally hired workers, or help to get approval from relevant government agencies for such workers

Inspection

! Corruption Risk Influencing the outcome of an inspection in return for a bribe or other benefit

Management

Authorization

! Corruption Risk Authorization of forest management plans based on false information, in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other corrupt actions to speed up approval processes and extend logging windows

Documentation

! Corruption Risk Altering, cloning, or selling volume and extraction documents in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Lack of a central system for volume and extraction documents makes detecting corrupt behavior more difficult

Oversight

! Corruption Risk Bribes or collusion to reduce supervision or weaken or ignore audit processes

Transport

Labeling/Sourcing

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other corrupt actions to change documentation of species, volumes or origin

Checkpoints

! Corruption Risk Control posts demand payments, threaten to slow processes unless benefits are offered

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other corrupt action to avoid inspections

Processing

Permitting

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other corrupt actions for authorization or permits to process wood

Documentation

! Corruption Risk Facilitation of entry of illegal wood into processing plants in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Bribery to ignore or approve falsified official record books at mills for log entries

Export & Trade

Documentation

! Corruption Risk Forgery of documents to legalize illegal forest products in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Falsifying CITES export permits in return for a bribe or other benefit

Customs

! Corruption Risk Bribes or other corrupt agreements to avoid cargo inspection or post-clearance audits

! Corruption Risk Approval of false documentation (shipment origin, classification, value) in return for a bribe or other benefit

! Corruption Risk Granting access to preferred trader programs in return for a bribe or other benefit

Permitting

! Corruption Risk Expediting export permits in return for a bribe or other benefit

Profits

Banks, Financial institutions and regulators

! Corruption Risk Bribery or collusion to facilitate laundering profits from illegal trade

! Corruption Risk Offering corrupt kickbacks to ignore the records of illicit financial flows or ignore flags of suspicious activities

Tax havens

! Corruption Risk Identities intentionally hidden to make accountability for corrupt actions and other illegal activities harder to enforce

A Note on Governance

Governance of natural resources doesn’t just happen within specific supply chains and the institutions directly involved in them. Legislatures, courts, individual politicians, and officials in institutions across government all make decisions that help to prevent, detect and prosecute corruption related to natural resources. But governance processes and practices can also be part of the problem. Corruption outside of specific natural resource supply chains might include payments to policy makers for limiting environmental regulations, payoffs to political parties for infrastructure contracts that destroy habitat, or collusion between judges and prosecutors to protect politically-connected offenders. Some other risk areas are outlined below, and analysis of decisions affecting natural resources may reveal others.

Policy & Legislation

Electing government officials

! Corruption Risk Political contributions or other favors to gain access to natural resources or avoid scrutiny of activities

Writing laws

! Corruption Risk Unclear or complex laws create conditions for abuse of power and official discretion

! Corruption Risk Gaps in jurisdiction limit oversight and accountability

! Corruption Risk Payments from corporations or other special interests tilt laws in lawmakers' favor

Implementation

! Corruption Risk Conflicts of interest lead to self-dealing or protecting friends and family at all stages of natural resource management

! Corruption Risk Poorly executed laws limit accountability for corrupt actions

Prosecution

Investigation

! Corruption Risk Investigations prevented or impeded in exchange for bribes or other benefits

! Corruption Risk Tip-offs, release of suspects, loss or tampering with evidence in exchange for bribes or other benefits

Trial

! Corruption Risk Case delays in exchange for bribes or other benefits

Sentencing

! Corruption Risk Unclear sentencing guidelines enable lenient penalties in exchange for bribes or other beneifts

! Corruption Risk Judges acquit defendants or impose lower sentences in exchange for bribes or other benefits

! Corruption Risk Political interference in the release of convicted traffickers in return for benefits

Penalties

! Corruption Risk Avoiding penalization in exchange for bribes or other benefits

The images used on this page are for illustration purposes only and do not imply the involvement of any depicted person or vessel in corruption or illegal activity.

Image attribution: © naturepl.com / Jen Guyton / WWF; © Brian J. Skerry / National Geographic Stock / WWF; © Georgina Goodwin / Shoot The Earth / WWF-UK; © Hkun Lat / WWF-Aus