Nigeria has again ranked as one of the
most corrupt countries of the world, according to a report by the
Transparency International (TI) yesterday.
Based on expert opinion from around the
world, the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) measures the perceived
levels of public sector corruption worldwide, and it painted an alarming
picture.
Not one single country got a perfect
score and more than two-thirds scored below 50, on a scale from 0
(highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
Nigeria ranked 27 along with countries such as Iran, Cameroun and Lebanon.
North Korea and Somalia ranked lowest with eight each in the highly corrupt category.
Denmark is the highest ranked country in
the very clean category with 92, while New Zealand (91), Finland (89),
Sweden (87), Norway and Switzerland (86) are among the “very clean”
countries.
The United States of America was ranked
74, below the United Kingdom (78). Ghana (48) and South Africa (44)
ranked higher than Nigeria in the index.
Regionally, the Americas was ranked 45;
Middle East and North Africa, 38; Asia Pacific, 43; Sub-Saharan Africa,
33; European Union, 66; and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, 33.
Regarding countries such as Nigeria
where corruption is high, TI said: “Poorly equipped schools, counterfeit
medicine and elections decided by money are just some of the
consequences of public sector corruption.
“Bribes and backroom deals don’t just
steal resources from the most vulnerable – they undermine justice and
economic development, and destroy public trust in government and
leaders.
“Countries at the bottom need to adopt
radical anti-corruption measures in favour of their people. Countries at
the top of the index should make sure they don’t export corrupt
practices to underdeveloped countries.”
Chair, Transparency International, José
Ugaz, said: “Corruption is a problem for all countries. A poor score is
likely a sign of widespread bribery, lack of punishment for corruption
and public institutions that don’t respond to citizens’ needs.
“Countries at the top of index also need
to act. Leading financial centres in the EU and U.S. need to join with
fast-growing economies to stop the corrupt from getting away with it.
The G20 needs to prove its global leadership role and prevent money
laundering and stop secret companies from masking corruption.”
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