Main points
- Bogotá has established and maintained an integrity and compliance framework at the district level, which has endured across successive administrations and political leaderships. These measures include institutional mechanisms for transparency and integrity, such as risk maps and codes of ethics, that extend to major state entities, including public service providers.
- Bogotá is the only capital city in Latin America that has its own transparency index (TB), specifically designed to measure corruption risks in its public management, in collaboration with Transparency International – Colombia Chapter.
- Bogotá’s hybrid decentralised governance model, while intended to bring administration closer to citizens, has created fragmented accountability structures that increase corruption risks at both central and local levels.
- Political patronage and discretionary contracting practices, especially through short-term service contracts, undermine meritocracy, institutional memory and transparency, making public administration vulnerable to clientelism and mismanagement.
- Petty and grand corruption coexist, with bribery (mordidas), irregular local contracting and major embezzlement scandals – like the “contracting carousel” – demonstrating systemic governance failures.
- Urban planning and climate adaptation projects, including water infrastructure and land-use reforms, are targeted by private actors seeking to influence public decisions, often prioritising profit over sustainability or equity.
- Major climate adaptation initiatives, such as the Bogotá River restoration and Canoas Wastewater Treatment Plant, have exhibited procurement irregularities, evidence of bid rigging and high-profile corruption allegations involving both public and private actors.
- Corruption in climate related public services reduces both the quantity and quality of outcomes, weakening resilience, delaying infrastructure delivery and undermining public trust in adaptation efforts.
