"Public procurement is a core government activity that is highly prone to corruption. Why, despite joint efforts of national governments and the international donor community to strengthen statutory frameworks, are public procurement systems in Sub-Saharan Africa still insufficiently equipped to prevent corruption? It is the purpose of the book to advance law and development research by (a) assessing the effectiveness of institutional means to curb procurement-related corruption in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda; (b) treating law as a means to foster development, and (c) applying qualitative research methods to establish causal mechanisms between law and the social phenomenon of corruption. The book shows that while procurement systems are on paper well suited to serve as anti-corruption instruments, implementation gaps are significant; thus, 'law in books' and 'law in action' differ to a large extent. The reasons are unearthed on the political, institutional, and individual level."--