Protected Areas and Spillovers on Corruption

Abstract

Do nature protected area (PA) establishments change local corruption levels? This article presents a theory of spatial spillovers, predicting (a) less corruption in areas inside protection, through increased government oversight and (b) more corruption outside of PAs because of corrupt activities’ displacement. To test these expectations we match geo-spatial information on the timing of the establishment of PAs in Africa with over 200,000 geo-coded Afrobarometer survey respondents. Our difference-in-differences approach finds little evidence of reductions in corruption inside PAs. However, we report an increase in experiences with bribery for respondents living in adjacent areas. Mechanism tests demonstrate an increased presence of police officers in these areas as well as larger effects in areas around PAs that attract tourists. We contribute to insights on linkages between conservation and government quality, a relationship with increasing relevance due to the expansion of PAs around the world.