Nairobi — The East African region loses more than $57,730 to corruption for every 100 transactions in tax revenue to corruption along the Northern Corridor, says a survey.

Clearing agents interviewed by research firm the Steadman Group claimed that they pay Custom officials bribes of between $100 and $150 depending on the value of the imported goods to expedite clearance and avoid high taxation.

The lead loser in the region so far is Uganda, says the survey that is expected to provoke controversy. For example, in June alone - when the survey was carried out - Uganda had an aggregated loss of $48,384 per 100 transactions, Kenya $5,439, Tanzania $3,867 and the Democratic Republic of Congo losing $40 only.

Mutukula along Tanzania-Uganda and Busia along Kenya-Uganda transit points experience the highest revenue loss to bribery in the Great Lakes region, according to the report. For every 100 transactions, $81,362 is lost at Mutukula, $34,083 at Busia and $3,028 at Dar es Salaam transit point.

Dar es Salaam and Holili along Kenya-Tanzania border point leads in corruption cases. At both points, the chances of a clearing agent paying a bribe stands at above 65 per cent.

The survey said Holili registered the highest bribery related loss of all transit points, where 56 per cent of the total cost of consignments went to bribes, translating into $4,530 while Dar es Salaam lost 65 percent ($2,040). Gatuna border at the Uganda-Rwandan transit point registered the lowest loss of 3 per cent.

However, Mombasa port registered a marked improvement with bribes dropping to below $30 from previous $100 for every 100 transactions.

Goods most prone to bribery are motor vehicle or machinery, perishable goods, electronic and chemical products.

Those interviewed revealed that due to corruption at the border points, the cost of doing business within the region has significantly increased, led to delays and has resulted in failure to receive legitimate services.

The report shows that it normally takes a minimum of five days to clear goods at any of the transit points in Tanzania, four in Nairobi and a maximum of two days from other EAC member country.

Corruption is a challenge across the region but clearing agents operating through Tanzania border posts suffer most. The survey found that 73 per cent of clearing agents are asked to pay bribes at different transit points in Tanzania. This is followed by Kenya, 53 per cent and Burundi 52 per cent. Rwanda registered the most efficient documentation process while Kenya and Uganda registered the worst.

The survey shows that in most cases the bribes are initiated by Customs officials but the amount of bribe is determined by the value of the consignments.

It was also shown that the bribes are always paid upfront and that the officials work independently hence increasing the number of those who have to be bribed.

The bribes are either paid differently or as part of service fees. Other methods used are to speed up Customs services are establishing friendship with customs officials and using "middlemen."

Though still high, many clearing agents, however, feel that cases of corruption across the border points have slightly decreased with Uganda and Tanzania registering great success in the fight against the vice at transit points.

However, the attitude of exporters, importers and clearing agents was also questioned as those interviewed said it is acceptable to give a token of appreciation for a job well done and that corruption is so deeply entrenched that it is almost impossible to eradicate it.

To others, public officials are so poorly paid that they have no choices but to ask for extra payment and that paying bribes or doing favours is the only way to expedite clearance procedures.

In the survey, clearing agents reported that it is a waste of time to report bribery cases to the police and anti-corruption authorities as they were subsequently either denied services or harassed.

Customs officials, on the other hand, complained about understaffing, congestion of goods and inadequate facilities.

They suggested better remuneration, education of clearing agents on corruption and heavy penalties for those caught. The clearing agents proposed the establishment of an anti-corruption hotline.

The survey was aimed at determining the level of improvement improvement in the integrity of clearance point and to provide baseline data for measuring the long-term impact of the anti-corruption programme across the region.

The Northern Corridor links the Great Lakes countries of Burundi, DRC, Rwanda and Uganda to the Kenyan seaport of Mombasa and serves Northern Tanzania, Southern Sudan and Ethiopia.