Corruption: What Is It Good For? (Absolutely Something)

Government procurement makes up 15% of global GDP. Despite its impact on almost every facet of how people live in cities, it is rarely a topic of research — the data is hard to access and the bureaucratic structures can be opaque. But Ed Glaeser thinks it is time we talk about it. 

 In New York City, procurement dollars often go to waste in inefficient funding processes. Why do we waste so many resources on procurement? (And why is the Second Avenue Subway still unfinished and over budget?) In part, Ed argues, it is because we New York is so afraid of corruption that we are hamstringing our own procedures.

Ed, a Harvard economist, joins me to explain how this happened, what other cities we can learn from, and how we can improve in this episode of After Hours.

Mentioned:

“Transit Costs Project,” NYU Marron Institute

“Public Procurement in Law and Practice,” by Erica Bosio, Simeon Djankov, Edward Glaeser, and Andrei Shleifer.

For more solutions-oriented thinking on urban life, visit the Vital City website at https://www.vitalcitynyc.org/.