Prague - Enforcement of Czech anti-corruption laws is not sufficient. That is the message of a study carried out by Ernst & Young consultancy company among managers in 33 countries including the Czech Republic.
Although 40 percent of the Czech managers believe the potential to enforce anti-corruption laws has improved in the last five years, 82 percent still don't see enough action taken on the matter.
However, at the same time, only 14 percent stated that their firm witnessed or committed acts of corruption or bribery.
Lagging behind the rest of the developed world
Nearly one quarter of those asked - 24 percent - claimed that their firm lost a client due to corruption.
"We are not significantly different from neighboring countries, however, these numbers are still twice as high as the statistics in the rest of the developed countries and we should not be complacent about it," commented Magdalena Souček who is a managing partner in risk advisory services department at Ernst & Young Central Europe.
The results from all of the countries in the stury show, surprisingly, that two thirds of managers see anti-corruption legislature in their countries as sufficiently effective.
Court expenses a biggest deterrent
According to Czech managers, the most negative effect of proven corruption are court expenses, threats to the future development of the firm and potentially limited possibilities to enter new markets.
This perception differs significantly from the majority of responses. In other countries, managers are scared most by fines and penalties.
However, there is consensus with the Czech counterparts that theresulting limited possibilities for market entry are a problem.
Importance of education and culture
Differences between Czech managers and the rest of the world is also in opinion of how to prevent corruption.
While most believe in internal audits, Czech managers tend to prefer regular checks of financial flow in firms.
