Zimbabweans also feel that corruption increased by 55% in the southern African country in the past year.

The graft survey titled Daily Lives and Corruption: Public Opinion in Southern Africa, Zimbabwe Republic Police stood out as the biggest recipient of bribes among service providers.

It centred on petty bribery cases and showed that last year, 52 percent of respondents reported paying a bribe. Of these, 60 percent were men while 44 percent were female.

At least 49 percent of bribe-payers belong to the higher-income quintile, while 42 percent are lower income earners.

"The police are perceived to be the most corrupt institution across all countries.

The police are perceived to be the most corrupt institution across all countries

"This correlates with the finding that bribes were more often paid to the police than any other institution- 49 percent of people who had been in contact with the police reported having paid a bribe" reads part of the report.

"People in Zimbabwe had the highest likelihood of paying a bribe for services they were entitled to with more than a quarter of respondents citing this reason."

The average amount of money said to be paid for bribes in the past 12 months, according to the survey, ranges from under $30 to more than $1 000.

The police were followed closely by officials handling registrations and permits, customs and the judiciary.

Zimbabwe has witnessed increasing incidents of corruption across all sectors of the economy.

Sport has also been hit amid indications that senior executives of the Zimbabwe Football Association and national team players made a fortune from participating in match-fixing activities in Asia.

By Staff reporter and agencies