You are making assumptions and putting words in my mouth. I'm not pretending anything, condoning corruption or saying whether companies believe it's an opportunity or nuisance. Neither did I address whether that country has the resources to do better. Duh, obviously it does. The fact of the matter is they cannot change the culture in Nigeria and aren't responsible for it. They are playing by the rules not making them. The reason Nigerians aren't better off is because of government corruption, not the actions of major companies doing business there. When you kick against the pricks in a place like that, prepare to be harassed, intimidated and arrested.
I think we are misunderstanding each other here, I did not attempt to put words in your mouth and I specifically acknowledged that they can not change the culture significantly. Apologies if it seemed that way. I agree with everything you say except I would add that IMO when you reward corruption with revenue (as major companies do with stuff like kickbacks), they share a slice of responsibility. Hilton hotel chain, for example, does not HAVE to operate in Nigeria, it chooses to do so, and the predictable consequence of choosing to do business there is (for example) having to pay kickbacks. If Hilton decides that it has principles and will not engage in this behavior (obviously in contrast to common practice) then they will not have to pay anyone anything and some corrupt person will have a tiny bit less power and money. That's all I was saying.
It is in fact cheaper to do that, I don't understand why you're taking it to mean that they have created these standards.
