Measuring Corruption: Multiple Perspectives for Understanding a Complex Phenomenon

Mexico City, September 3, 2026. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Mexico attended the presentation of the book *Measuring Corruption*, held at the Chamber of Deputies and organized by the Oversight Committee of the Federal Superior Audit Office.

The event brought together representatives from the legislative branch, academia, the business sector, transparency organizations, and anti-corruption agencies to reflect on the conceptual, methodological, and institutional challenges involved in measuring a complex, systemic, and ever-changing phenomenon.

Corruption: A Systemic and Multidimensional Phenomenon

Federal Deputy Javier Herrera Borunda, chair of the Oversight Committee of the Federal Superior Audit Office, noted that corruption should not be understood solely as individual and isolated behavior, but rather as a phenomenon involving networks and multiple actors that requires inter-institutional coordination, technology, and knowledge to be prevented and combated. He also announced the preparation of a legislative initiative that includes 19 amendments to secondary laws on anti-corruption and invited academics and practitioners within the system to provide feedback to enrich the legislative debate.

Dr. Nancy García Vázquez, coordinator of the book *Measuring Corruption*, explained that the work aims to provide an overview of the various available methodologies, their scope, and their limitations. She emphasized that, by its very nature, corruption must be analyzed from an interdisciplinary perspective.

For his part, Dr. Antonio Ruiz Porras, co-coordinator of the book and a professor at the University of Guadalajara, noted that many academic studies on corruption in Mexico do not define the phenomenon they seek to analyze with sufficient clarity; he also highlighted one of the publication’s central premises: “what is measured can be improved.”

Measuring the Different Dimensions of Corruption

Dr. Patricia Talavera Torres, president of the National Anti-Corruption System, highlighted the need to develop tools to measure corruption prevention and the impact of citizen participation.

Laura Liset Enríquez Rodríguez, chair of the Mexico City Information Commission (INFO), emphasized the need to distinguish between forms of corruption such as bribery, the embezzlement of funds, or vote-buying; and noted that each form requires specific measurement tools. She also highlighted the importance of identifying institutional conditions and risks that favor, facilitate, and promote the perpetuation of corruption.

Dr. Alejandra Ríos Cázares, director at the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), explained that a systemic measurement requires broadening the definition of corruption to consider not only individual behaviors but also institutions, people, and the relationships they establish with one another. She explained that INEGI collects information on perceptions of and experiences with corruption through surveys and obtains data on institutional capacities and control mechanisms through government censuses.

Two Proposals That Can Complement Each Other

The insights gathered in *Measuring Corruption* can generate significant synergies with the Statistical Framework for Measuring Corruption, developed by UNODC with the support of the UNODC-INEGI Center of Excellence.

Both proposals are based on a common recognition: corruption is a multidimensional phenomenon that cannot be explained by a single definition, information source, or measure. Therefore, studying requires integrating different perspectives, distinguishing its manifestations, and analyzing not only the observed facts but also the institutional and social conditions that enable its emergence and reproduction.

For its part, the UNODC Statistical Framework provides a structure of direct and indirect indicators, accompanied by guidelines for their collection and analysis. Its purpose is to support countries in building or strengthening national information systems capable of detecting the presence of different forms of corruption, measuring their magnitude, and tracking their trends.

This complementarity can help strengthen national measurement capacities and guide the design, monitoring, and evaluation of evidence-based integrity and anti-corruption policies.

The presentation of *Measuring Corruption* showed that measurement is not an end in itself. Its true value lies in generating evidence that enables us to understand the phenomenon, identify risks, strengthen prevention, improve institutions, and design more relevant public policies.

The publication *Measuring Corruption* is open access and can be found on the El Colegio de Jalisco website. The Statistical Framework for Measuring Corruption is also available for consultation.