2017 CPI ranks corruption in 180 countries [1]
Wednesday, March 28, 2018 - 18:04. Updated on Wednesday, March 28, 2018 - 18:36.
Transparency International published its 2017 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) on 21 February, ranking the level of public sector corruption in 180 countries and territories.
The index, which ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and businesspeople, uses a scale of zero to 100, where zero is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. This year, the index found that more than two-thirds of countries score below 50, with an average score of 43.
Pacific countries ranking in the 2017 CPI are: New Zealand 1, Australia 13, Vanuatu 71, Solomon Islands 85, Timor Leste 91, PNG 135.
Tonga was last included in the Corruption Perceptions Index in 2011 when it was ranked 95 out of 182 countries.
If a country is not featured in the CPI ranking, it is solely because of insufficient survey information and not an indication that corruption does not exist in the country.
In the latest 2017 CPI, New Zealand and Denmark rank highest with scores of 89 and 88 respectively. Syria, South Sudan and Somalia rank lowest with scores of 14, 12 and 9 respectively. The best performing region is Western Europe with an average score of 66.
The worst performing regions are Sub-Saharan Africa (average score 32) and Eastern Europe and Central Asia (average score 34).
The whole world is divided into five regions, Asia Pacific, Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East & Northern Africa, Americas and Europe and Central Asia.
The 31 countries in the Asia Pacific Region are: New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Bhutan, Taiwan, Brunei Darussalam, South Korea, Malaysia, Vanuatu, China, India, Solomon Islands, Ari Lanka, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Thailand, Mongolia, Vietnam, Philippines, Maldives, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, Cambodia, North Korea, and Afghanistan.
Essence of democracy
The chair of Transparency International, Delia Ferreira Rubio pointed out that this year’s Corruption Perceptions Index CPI results correlate not only with the attacks on Press Freedom and the reduction of space for civil society organizations. “High levels of corruption also correlate with weak rule of law, lack of access to information, governmental control over social media and reduced citizens’ participation. In fact, what is at stake is the very essence of democracy and freedom.”
Transparency International has been publishing the CPI since its inception in 1995, but this time it expressed its disappointment over the fact that a majority of the 180 countries are making “little or no progress in ending corruption."
“Even more alarming, further analysis of the index results indicates that countries with the lowest protections for press and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) also tend to have the worst rates of corruption.”