Singled out for criticism by the Transparency International were Britain and Japan, which, the German group claims, have done little or nothing to combat instances of companies bribing officials in developing countries and promoting other types of corruption.

"Vulnerable communities across the world continue to pay the price for corruption in basic services denied, public resources depleted and institutions subverted by greed," said group Chairwoman Huguette Labelle. "The G8, as the world's most powerful economies, have a golden opportunity to ensure that no further generation is lost to corruption and poverty."

The group says countries that have signed on to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's anti-bribery convention have a moral duty to fight such problems.

They say Japan has brought only one, minor foreign bribery case, while Britain terminated a 2006 foreign bribery investigation of defense company BAE Systems, ostensibly on national security grounds.