Corruption practices in Sofia municipality: Sociological survey among citizens and business representatives

The survey is part of the project „Non-repressive Model to Reduce Corruption at Municipal Level“, implemented by RiskMonitor Foundation, Sofia Development Association and MEPCO (Czech Republic).The aim of the survey is to outline the major issues, faced by citizens and business on corruption cases in the municipality, and to find out what needs to be done in order to prevent corruption practices.

The survey was conducted by Alpha Research Agency in the last months of 2013. Respondents included 550 citizens and businesses representatives, who are using the services of various units of the 24 regional administrations of Sofia Municipality.

Although the public awareness of  “corruption” is high, the survey showed that the majority of people are not familiar with either normative basis, or measures to combat corruption in the municipality. The lack of transparent and effective mechanisms to respond to citizens’ signals and complaints creates distrust and the feeling that nothing will change. The majority of respondents indicate that future non-repressive measures to prevent corrupt practices should include development of a comprehensive municipal strategy to fight corruption and establishment of procedures for citizen monitoring.

Read the summary of the survey  results (in English).

The project NORMCORM (Non-repressive Model to Reduce Corruption at Municipal Level) is co-funded by DG Home Affairs, Prevention of and Fight against Crime Programme of the European Commission.