"Wouldn't it be better to overthrow the crooks, install our own government, etc."
Well, we can all see how that is working out in Iraq. How much extra taxes are we willing to pay to finance the military we would need to implement such a policy?
Actually one concrete idea might be for the World Bank, etc., to stop funding such large projects unless they practiced proper oversight. If I hire a contractor to do a major project on my house, I give him 1/3 to get permits and buy materials, a second 1/3 when the project is half done to my satisfaction, and the final 1/3 when it is completed. If that library had international funding, the people who authorized the payments should be sued for misfeasance and nonfeasance at the very least.
It's actually working out quite well there. We need to repay our investment by confiscating a portion of Iraq's crude.
How much extra taxes are we willing to pay to finance the military we would need to implement such a policy?
Nope. The "host" country pays for the military ... in the long run. Once they're up to speed, we begin to take our royalties from their exports until we're repaid and they can stand alone.
Not a new idea. Rome did it two thousand years ago.
Or stop funding the projects entirely. It's the excess money that keeps the thieves in power. If the thieves had to steal from the locals, the locals might be more likely to rise up in rebellion