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This study investigates the impact of foreign aid inflows on corruption in selected East African Community (EAC) member countries. The study employs panel data covering five EAC countries over the period 2004–2025. To examine the relationship between foreign aid and corruption, three panel estimation techniques were applied, namely Pooled Ordinary Least Squares (POLS), Fixed Effects (FE), and Random Effects (RE) models. The empirical findings reveal that foreign aid inflows have a significant negative effect on control of corruption, implying that increased aid contributes to reducing control of corruption levels in EAC member states. The results are statistically significant and robust across the alternative estimation techniques employed. Based on these findings, the study recommends strengthening cooperation between donor agencies and recipient countries in the allocation and monitoring of aid resources. Donors should also attach governance related conditions that promote transparency, accountability, and institutional development. Furthermore, aid allocation should be more selective, with greater consideration given to the quality of governance and institutional reforms in recipient countries to enhance the effectiveness of aid in combating corruption.
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