Main points

• Pacific island countries vary widely in terms of geography, geographic and population size, and levels of development. However, in terms of corruption risks, many are prone to foreign influence, bribery, money laundering and petty corruption in public service delivery. Transnational corruption and organised criminal groups also affect the region.
• The sectors most at risk in the region tend to be natural resource extraction, fishing and finance.
• Financial secrecy is high in many of these jurisdictions, allowing for the formation of shell companies which may be used to launder ill-gotten gains from overseas. Several of these countries, including Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa, the Marshall Islands and Kiribati are considered to be tax havens.
• There are several high-profile corruption scandals from the majority of Pacific island countries examined in this Helpdesk Answer, often involving bribery, abuse of office and embezzlement.