TI Corruption Index shows high level of corruption leading to rise in populist politicians [1]
Friday, January 27, 2017 - 12:23. Updated on Monday, January 30, 2017 - 10:04.
Out of 176 countries listed in the Corruption Perceptions Index 2016, excluding Tonga, an alarming 69 per cent scored below 50, on a scale from 0 (perceived highly corruptible) to 100 (perceived as very clean).
The index, released by the Transparency International on 25 January, reveals a high amount of low ranking countries where corruption and social inequality continues to exist and reinforce each other in a vicious cycle resulting in unequal distribution of power in society and unequal distribution of wealth.
Transparency International says these issues lead to widespread dissatisfaction with political establishments and provides grounds for an increase of populist politicians, which should be taken as a warning signal that corruption and inequality must be tackled.
José Ugaz, Chair of Transparency International said, “In too many countries, people are deprived of their most basic needs and go to bed hungry every night because of corruption, while the powerful and corrupt enjoy lavish lifestyles with impunity.”
“We do not have the luxury of time. Corruption needs to be fought with urgency, so that the lives of people across the world improve.”
Over the last few years, people looking for change are voting in those they believe will tackle the cycle of corruption and privilege.
Populist politicians
The rise in populist politicians is evident in the recent US election, and across Europe.
Transparency International warns that history shows going down the populist path tends to worsen the issue.
In Hungary and Turkey, the rise of autocratic leaders led to a drop in Index scores in recent years, whereas the index score for Argentina, which has ousted a populist government, is starting to improve.
“In countries with populist or autocratic leaders, we often see democracies in decline and a disturbing pattern of attempts to crack down on civil society, limit press freedom, and weaken the independence of the judiciary. Instead of tackling crony capitalism, those leaders usually install even worse forms of corrupt systems,” said José.
“Only where there is freedom of expression, transparency in all political processes and strong democratic institutions, can civil society and the media hold those in power to account and corruption be fought successfully.”
Rankings
The top five on the 2016 index include New Zealand and Denmark both ranking first on the table followed by Finland, Sweden, and Switzerland. Higher ranked countries reflect open government, press freedom, civil liberties and independent judicial systems.
The UK ranked at 10, Australia at 13, the US at 18, China at 79, and Russia at 131.
The countries at the bottom of the table include Sudan, Yemen, Syria, North Korea, South Sudan and Somalia, all have poor governance and weak institutions.
Papua New Guinea, the only Pacific Island country included on the 2016 list, ranked at 136 with a score of 28.
Tonga has not been included in the Corruption Perceptions Index since 2011 when it ranked 95 out of 182 countries.
Corruption Perceptions Index 2016
2016 Rank | Country |
2016 |
2015 |
2014 |
2013 |
2012 |
Region |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Denmark | 90 | 91 | 92 | 91 | 90 | Europe and Central Asia |
1 | New Zealand | 90 | 88 | 91 | 91 | 90 | Asia Pacific |
3 | Finland | 89 | 90 | 89 | 89 | 90 | Europe and Central Asia |
4 | Sweden | 88 | 89 | 87 | 89 | 88 | Europe and Central Asia |
5 | Switzerland | 86 | 86 | 86 | 85 | 86 | Europe and Central Asia |
6 | Norway | 85 | 87 | 86 | 86 | 85 | Europe and Central Asia |
7 | Singapore | 84 | 85 | 84 | 86 | 87 | Asia Pacific |
8 | Netherlands | 83 | 87 | 83 | 83 | 84 | Europe and Central Asia |
9 | Canada | 82 | 83 | 81 | 81 | 84 | Americas |
10 | Germany | 81 | 81 | 79 | 78 | 79 | Europe and Central Asia |
10 | Luxembourg | 81 | 81 | 82 | 80 | 80 | Europe and Central Asia |
10 | United Kingdom | 81 | 81 | 78 | 76 | 74 | Europe and Central Asia |
13 | Australia | 79 | 79 | 80 | 81 | 85 | Asia Pacific |
14 | Iceland | 78 | 79 | 79 | 78 | 82 | Europe and Central Asia |
15 | Belgium | 77 | 77 | 76 | 75 | 75 | Europe and Central Asia |
15 | Hong Kong | 77 | 75 | 74 | 75 | 77 | Asia Pacific |
17 | Austria | 75 | 76 | 72 | 69 | 69 | Europe and Central Asia |
18 | United States | 74 | 76 | 74 | 73 | 73 | Americas |
19 | Ireland | 73 | 75 | 74 | 72 | 69 | Europe and Central Asia |
20 | Japan | 72 | 75 | 76 | 74 | 74 | Asia Pacific |
21 | Uruguay | 71 | 74 | 73 | 73 | 72 | Americas |
22 | Estonia | 70 | 70 | 69 | 68 | 64 | Europe and Central Asia |
23 | France | 69 | 70 | 69 | 71 | 71 | Europe and Central Asia |
24 | Bahamas | 66 | N/A | 71 | 71 | 71 | Americas |
24 | Chile | 66 | 70 | 73 | 71 | 72 | Americas |
24 | United Arab Emirates | 66 | 70 | 70 | 69 | 68 | Middle East and North Africa |
27 | Bhutan | 65 | 65 | 65 | 63 | 63 | Asia Pacific |
28 | Israel | 64 | 61 | 60 | 61 | 60 | Middle East and North Africa |
29 | Poland | 62 | 62 | 61 | 60 | 58 | Europe and Central Asia |
29 | Portugal | 62 | 63 | 63 | 62 | 63 | Europe and Central Asia |
31 | Barbados | 61 | N/A | 74 | 75 | 76 | Americas |
31 | Qatar | 61 | 71 | 69 | 68 | 68 | Middle East and North Africa |
31 | Slovenia | 61 | 60 | 58 | 57 | 61 | Europe and Central Asia |
31 | Taiwan | 61 | 62 | 61 | 61 | 61 | Asia Pacific |
35 | Botswana | 60 | 63 | 63 | 64 | 65 | Sub Saharan Africa |
35 | Saint Lucia | 60 | N/A | N/A | 71 | 71 | Americas |
35 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 60 | N/A | 67 | 62 | 62 | Americas |
38 | Cape Verde | 59 | 55 | 57 | 58 | 60 | Sub Saharan Africa |
38 | Dominica | 59 | N/A | 58 | 58 | 58 | Americas |
38 | Lithuania | 59 | 61 | 58 | 57 | 54 | Europe and Central Asia |
41 | Brunei | 58 | N/A | N/A | 60 | 55 | Asia Pacific |
41 | Costa Rica | 58 | 55 | 54 | 53 | 54 | Americas |
41 | Spain | 58 | 58 | 60 | 59 | 65 | Europe and Central Asia |
44 | Georgia | 57 | 52 | 52 | 49 | 52 | Europe and Central Asia |
44 | Latvia | 57 | 55 | 55 | 53 | 49 | Europe and Central Asia |
46 | Grenada | 56 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Americas |
47 | Cyprus | 55 | 61 | 63 | 63 | 66 | Europe and Central Asia |
47 | Czech Republic | 55 | 56 | 51 | 48 | 49 | Europe and Central Asia |
47 | Malta | 55 | 56 | 55 | 56 | 57 | Europe and Central Asia |
50 | Mauritius | 54 | 53 | 54 | 52 | 57 | Sub Saharan Africa |
50 | Rwanda | 54 | 54 | 49 | 53 | 53 | Sub Saharan Africa |
52 | Korea (South) | 53 | 56 | 55 | 55 | 56 | Asia Pacific |
53 | Namibia | 52 | 53 | 49 | 48 | 48 | Sub Saharan Africa |
54 | Slovakia | 51 | 51 | 50 | 47 | 46 | Europe and Central Asia |
55 | Croatia | 49 | 51 | 48 | 48 | 46 | Europe and Central Asia |
55 | Malaysia | 49 | 50 | 52 | 50 | 49 | Asia Pacific |
57 | Hungary | 48 | 51 | 54 | 54 | 55 | Europe and Central Asia |
57 | Jordan | 48 | 53 | 49 | 45 | 48 | Middle East and North Africa |
57 | Romania | 48 | 46 | 43 | 43 | 44 | Europe and Central Asia |
60 | Cuba | 47 | 47 | 46 | 46 | 48 | Americas |
60 | Italy | 47 | 44 | 43 | 43 | 42 | Europe and Central Asia |
62 | Sao Tome and Principe | 46 | 42 | 42 | 42 | 42 | Sub Saharan Africa |
62 | Saudi Arabia | 46 | 52 | 49 | 46 | 44 | Middle East and North Africa |
64 | Montenegro | 45 | 44 | 42 | 44 | 41 | Europe and Central Asia |
64 | Oman | 45 | 45 | 45 | 47 | 47 | Middle East and North Africa |
64 | Senegal | 45 | 44 | 43 | 41 | 36 | Sub Saharan Africa |
64 | South Africa | 45 | 44 | 44 | 42 | 43 | Sub Saharan Africa |
64 | Suriname | 45 | 36 | 36 | 36 | 37 | Americas |
69 | Greece | 44 | 46 | 43 | 40 | 36 | Europe and Central Asia |
70 | Bahrain | 43 | 51 | 49 | 48 | 51 | Middle East and North Africa |
70 | Ghana | 43 | 47 | 48 | 46 | 45 | Sub Saharan Africa |
72 | Burkina Faso | 42 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | Sub Saharan Africa |
72 | Serbia | 42 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 39 | Europe and Central Asia |
72 | Solomon Islands | 42 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Asia Pacific |
75 | Bulgaria | 41 | 41 | 43 | 41 | 41 | Europe and Central Asia |
75 | Kuwait | 41 | 49 | 44 | 43 | 44 | Middle East and North Africa |
75 | Tunisia | 41 | 38 | 40 | 41 | 41 | Middle East and North Africa |
75 | Turkey | 41 | 42 | 45 | 50 | 49 | Europe and Central Asia |
79 | Belarus | 40 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 31 | Europe and Central Asia |
79 | Brazil | 40 | 38 | 43 | 42 | 43 | Americas |
79 | China | 40 | 37 | 36 | 40 | 39 | Asia Pacific |
79 | India | 40 | 38 | 38 | 36 | 36 | Asia Pacific |
83 | Albania | 39 | 36 | 33 | 31 | 33 | Europe and Central Asia |
83 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 39 | 38 | 39 | 42 | 42 | Europe and Central Asia |
83 | Jamaica | 39 | 41 | 38 | 38 | 38 | Americas |
83 | Lesotho | 39 | 44 | 49 | 49 | 45 | Sub Saharan Africa |
87 | Mongolia | 38 | 39 | 39 | 38 | 36 | Asia Pacific |
87 | Panama | 38 | 39 | 37 | 35 | 38 | Americas |
87 | Zambia | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 37 | Sub Saharan Africa |
90 | Colombia | 37 | 37 | 37 | 36 | 36 | Americas |
90 | Indonesia | 37 | 36 | 34 | 32 | 32 | Asia Pacific |
90 | Liberia | 37 | 37 | 37 | 38 | 41 | Sub Saharan Africa |
90 | Morocco | 37 | 36 | 39 | 37 | 37 | Middle East and North Africa |
90 | The FYR of Macedonia | 37 | 42 | 45 | 44 | 43 | Europe and Central Asia |
95 | Argentina | 36 | 32 | 34 | 34 | 35 | Americas |
95 | Benin | 36 | 37 | 39 | 36 | 36 | Sub Saharan Africa |
95 | El Salvador | 36 | 39 | 39 | 38 | 38 | Americas |
95 | Kosovo | 36 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 34 | Europe and Central Asia |
95 | Maldives | 36 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Asia Pacific |
95 | Sri Lanka | 36 | 37 | 38 | 37 | 40 | Asia Pacific |
101 | Gabon | 35 | 34 | 37 | 34 | 35 | Sub Saharan Africa |
101 | Niger | 35 | 34 | 35 | 34 | 33 | Sub Saharan Africa |
101 | Peru | 35 | 36 | 38 | 38 | 38 | Americas |
101 | Philippines | 35 | 35 | 38 | 36 | 34 | Asia Pacific |
101 | Thailand | 35 | 38 | 38 | 35 | 37 | Asia Pacific |
101 | Timor-Leste | 35 | 28 | 28 | 30 | 33 | Asia Pacific |
101 | Trinidad and Tobago | 35 | 39 | 38 | 38 | 39 | Americas |
108 | Algeria | 34 | 36 | 36 | 36 | 34 | Middle East and North Africa |
108 | Côte d´Ivoire | 34 | 32 | 32 | 27 | 29 | Sub Saharan Africa |
108 | Egypt | 34 | 36 | 37 | 32 | 32 | Middle East and North Africa |
108 | Ethiopia | 34 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 33 | Sub Saharan Africa |
108 | Guyana | 34 | 29 | 30 | 27 | 28 | Americas |
113 | Armenia | 33 | 35 | 37 | 36 | 34 | Europe and Central Asia |
113 | Bolivia | 33 | 34 | 35 | 34 | 34 | Americas |
113 | Vietnam | 33 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 31 | Asia Pacific |
116 | Mali | 32 | 35 | 32 | 28 | 34 | Sub Saharan Africa |
116 | Pakistan | 32 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 27 | Asia Pacific |
116 | Tanzania | 32 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 35 | Sub Saharan Africa |
116 | Togo | 32 | 32 | 29 | 29 | 30 | Sub Saharan Africa |
120 | Dominican Republic | 31 | 33 | 32 | 29 | 32 | Americas |
120 | Ecuador | 31 | 32 | 33 | 35 | 32 | Americas |
120 | Malawi | 31 | 31 | 33 | 37 | 37 | Sub Saharan Africa |
123 | Azerbaijan | 30 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 | Europe and Central Asia |
123 | Djibouti | 30 | 34 | 34 | 36 | 36 | Sub Saharan Africa |
123 | Honduras | 30 | 31 | 29 | 26 | 28 | Americas |
123 | Laos | 30 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 21 | Asia Pacific |
123 | Mexico | 30 | 35 | 35 | 34 | 34 | Americas |
123 | Moldova | 30 | 33 | 35 | 35 | 36 | Europe and Central Asia |
123 | Paraguay | 30 | 27 | 24 | 24 | 25 | Americas |
123 | Sierra Leone | 30 | 29 | 31 | 30 | 31 | Sub Saharan Africa |
131 | Iran | 29 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 28 | Middle East and North Africa |
131 | Kazakhstan | 29 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 28 | Europe and Central Asia |
131 | Nepal | 29 | 27 | 29 | 31 | 27 | Asia Pacific |
131 | Russia | 29 | 29 | 27 | 28 | 28 | Europe and Central Asia |
131 | Ukraine | 29 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 26 | Europe and Central Asia |
136 | Guatemala | 28 | 28 | 32 | 29 | 33 | Americas |
136 | Kyrgyzstan | 28 | 28 | 27 | 24 | 24 | Europe and Central Asia |
136 | Lebanon | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 30 | Middle East and North Africa |
136 | Myanmar | 28 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 15 | Asia Pacific |
136 | Nigeria | 28 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 27 | Sub Saharan Africa |
136 | Papua New Guinea | 28 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | Asia Pacific |
142 | Guinea | 27 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 24 | Sub Saharan Africa |
142 | Mauritania | 27 | 31 | 30 | 30 | 31 | Middle East and North Africa |
142 | Mozambique | 27 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 31 | Sub Saharan Africa |
145 | Bangladesh | 26 | 25 | 25 | 27 | 26 | Asia Pacific |
145 | Cameroon | 26 | 27 | 27 | 25 | 26 | Sub Saharan Africa |
145 | Gambia | 26 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 34 | Sub Saharan Africa |
145 | Kenya | 26 | 25 | 25 | 27 | 27 | Sub Saharan Africa |
145 | Madagascar | 26 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 32 | Sub Saharan Africa |
145 | Nicaragua | 26 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 29 | Americas |
151 | Tajikistan | 25 | 26 | 23 | 22 | 22 | Europe and Central Asia |
151 | Uganda | 25 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 29 | Sub Saharan Africa |
153 | Comoros | 24 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 28 | Sub Saharan Africa |
154 | Turkmenistan | 22 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 17 | Europe and Central Asia |
154 | Zimbabwe | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 20 | Sub Saharan Africa |
156 | Cambodia | 21 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 22 | Asia Pacific |
156 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | Sub Saharan Africa |
156 | Uzbekistan | 21 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 17 | Europe and Central Asia |
159 | Burundi | 20 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 19 | Sub Saharan Africa |
159 | Central African Republic | 20 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | Sub Saharan Africa |
159 | Chad | 20 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 19 | Sub Saharan Africa |
159 | Haiti | 20 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 19 | Americas |
159 | Republic of Congo | 20 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 26 | Sub Saharan Africa |
164 | Angola | 18 | 15 | 19 | 23 | 22 | Sub Saharan Africa |
164 | Eritrea | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 25 | Sub Saharan Africa |
166 | Iraq | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 18 | Middle East and North Africa |
166 | Venezuela | 17 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 19 | Americas |
168 | Guinea-Bissau | 16 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 25 | Sub Saharan Africa |
169 | Afghanistan | 15 | 11 | 12 | 8 | 8 | Asia Pacific |
170 | Libya | 14 | 16 | 18 | 15 | 21 | Middle East and North Africa |
170 | Sudan | 14 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 13 | Middle East and North Africa |
170 | Yemen | 14 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 23 | Middle East and North Africa |
173 | Syria | 13 | 18 | 20 | 17 | 26 | Middle East and North Africa |
174 | Korea (North) | 12 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | Asia Pacific |
175 | South Sudan | 11 | 15 | 15 | 14 | N/A | Sub Saharan Africa |
176 | Somalia | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | Sub Saharan Africa |