In 1987, Italy decided that it would include the proceeds from criminal activity in its national accounts. Overnight, its economy grew by 18 percent, allowing Italy to surpass Britain to become the West’s fourth-largest economy. This event became known as il sorpasso (the overtaking). Should Cambodia and Laos follow suit?
A report published this year by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) estimated that the illegal scamming industry in Cambodia is likely worth around $12.5 billion annually, half the country’s formal GDP. While the report does not provide a specific figure for Laos, one can make a calculation. The USIP derived the Cambodia figure by multiplying the conservative estimate of people working in the industry (100,000) by their average daily earnings ($350), then by the number of days in a year. The USIP estimates that 85,000 people are working in Laos’ scam industry, so that would make it approximately $10.8 billion, more than two-thirds of Laos’ formal GDP.
