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Transparency International - The Global Anti-Corruption Coalition
The 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index clearly shows that corruption remains a blight around the world. But 2015 was also a year when people again took to the streets to protest corruption. People across the globe sent a strong signal to those in power: it is time to tackle grand corruption.
José Ugaz,
Chair, Transparency International
WHICH COUNTRIES IMPROVED? WHICH GOT WORSE?
2015 showed that people working together can succeed in fighting corruption. Although corruption is still rife globally, more countries improved their scores in 2015 than declined.
Some countries have improved in recent years – Greece, Senegal and the UK are among those that have seen a significant increase in scores since 2012.
Others, including Australia, Brazil, Libya, Spain and Turkey, have deteriorated.
Dealing with many entrenched corruption issues, Brazil has been rocked by the Petrobras scandal, in which politicians are reported to have taken kickbacks in exchange for awarding public contracts. As the economy crunches, tens of thousands of ordinary Brazilians have lost their jobs already. They didn’t make the decisions that led to the scandal. But they’re the ones living with the consequences.
PETROBRAS
Brazil’s state-controlled oil giant
US$2 billion in reported bribes, kickbacks and money laundering
Tens of thousands of jobs lost
Over a million people protest on the streets
TAKE ACTION
CORRUPTION AND CONFLICT
GO HAND IN HAND
© Xinhua/Pan Chaoyue. In Syria, as in other countries, deep corruption has helped finance violent extremist groups and provide them with a powerful narrative for recruitment. Vast quantities of weapons have been sold in the region primarily by Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States often with little oversight.
LOWEST SCORERS CHARACTERISED BY BLOODY AND ENTRENCHED CONFLICT
Five of the 10 most corrupt countries also rank among the 10 least peaceful places in the world.
In Afghanistan, millions of dollars that should have gone on reconstruction have been reportedly wasted or stolen, seriously undermining efforts to sustain peace.
Even where there’s not open conflict, the levels of inequality and poverty in these countries are devastating.
In Angola, 70 per cent of the population live on US$2 a day or less. One in six children die before the age of five – making it the deadliest place in the world to be a child. More than 150,000 children die each year. But not everyone’s suffering.
Dubbed Africa’s youngest billionaire, Isabel dos Santos made her US$3.4 billion fortune from the national diamond and telecommunications business. She’s also the president’s daughter.
ARE HIGH SCORING COUNTRIES
EXPORTING CORRUPTION OVERSEAS?
© David Rengel. An activist in Cambodia stands on piles of wood that once formed the forest she grew up in. She says the government evicted her village to make way for foreign companies who want to use the area to grow sugarcane and rubber. She’s now fighting to regain the land.
MANY “CLEAN” COUNTRIES HAVE DODGY RECORDS OVERSEAS
Northern Europe emerges well in the index – it’s home to four of the top five countries.
But just because a country has a clean public sector at home, doesn’t mean it isn’t linked to corruption elsewhere.
Take Sweden for instance. It comes third in the index, yet the Swedish-Finnish firm TeliaSonera – 37 per cent owned by the Swedish state – is facing allegations that it paid millions of dollars in bribes to secure business in Uzbekistan, which comes in at 153rd in the index.
The company is now pulling out of business in Central Asia, but Sweden isn’t the only “clean” country to be linked to dodgy behaviour overseas. As our research shows, half of all OECD countries are violating their international obligations to crack down on bribery by their companies abroad.
TABLE OF RESULTS: CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX 2015
A country or territory’s score indicates the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). A country's rank indicates its position relative to the other countries in the index. This year's index includes 168 countries and territories. Click on the column headings to sort the results, or use the search to view the results for one country. Note that N/A means a country was not included in the index during a particular year. To learn more about the results and view the confidence intervals, please see our FAQs and download an XLS or JSON of the results.
Search
Rank Country/territory 2015 Score
1 Denmark 91
2 Finland 90
3 Sweden 89
4 New Zealand 88
5 Netherlands 87
5 Norway 87
7 Switzerland 86
8 Singapore 85
9 Canada 83
10 Germany 81
10 Luxembourg 81
10 United Kingdom 81
13 Australia 79
13 Iceland 79
15 Belgium 77
16 Austria 76
16 United States 76
18 Hong Kong 75
18 Ireland 75
18 Japan 75
21 Uruguay 74
22 Qatar 71
23 Chile 70
23 Estonia 70
23 France 70
23 United Arab Emirates 70
27 Bhutan 65
28 Botswana 63
28 Portugal 63
30 Poland 62
30 Taiwan 62
32 Cyprus 61
32 Israel 61
32 Lithuania 61
35 Slovenia 60
36 Spain 58
37 Czech Republic 56
37 Korea (South) 56
37 Malta 56
40 Cape Verde 55
40 Costa Rica 55
40 Latvia 55
40 Seychelles 55
44 Rwanda 54
45 Jordan 53
45 Mauritius 53
45 Namibia 53
48 Georgia 52
48 Saudi Arabia 52
50 Bahrain 51
50 Croatia 51
50 Hungary 51
50 Slovakia 51
54 Malaysia 50
55 Kuwait 49
56 Cuba 47
56 Ghana 47
58 Greece 46
58 Romania 46
60 Oman 45
61 Italy 44
61 Lesotho 44
61 Montenegro 44
61 Senegal 44
61 South Africa 44
66 Sao Tome and Principe 42
66 The FYR of Macedonia 42
66 Turkey 42
69 Bulgaria 41
69 Jamaica 41
71 Serbia 40
72 El Salvador 39
72 Mongolia 39
72 Panama 39
72 Trinidad and Tobago 39
76 Bosnia and Herzegovina 38
76 Brazil 38
76 Burkina Faso 38
76 India 38
76 Thailand 38
76 Tunisia 38
76 Zambia 38
83 Benin 37
83 China 37
83 Colombia 37
83 Liberia 37
83 Sri Lanka 37
88 Albania 36
88 Algeria 36
88 Egypt 36
88 Indonesia 36
88 Morocco 36
88 Peru 36
88 Suriname 36
95 Armenia 35
95 Mali 35
95 Mexico 35
95 Philippines 35
99 Bolivia 34
99 Djibouti 34
99 Gabon 34
99 Niger 34
103 Dominican Republic 33
103 Ethiopia 33
103 Kosovo 33
103 Moldova 33
107 Argentina 32
107 Belarus 32
107 Cote d'Ivoire 32
107 Ecuador 32
107 Togo 32
112 Honduras 31
112 Malawi 31
112 Mauritania 31
112 Mozambique 31
112 Vietnam 31
117 Pakistan 30
117 Tanzania 30
119 Azerbaijan 29
119 Guyana 29
119 Russia 29
119 Sierra Leone 29
123 Gambia 28
123 Guatemala 28
123 Kazakhstan 28
123 Kyrgyzstan 28
123 Lebanon 28
123 Madagascar 28
123 Timor-Leste 28
130 Cameroon 27
130 Iran 27
130 Nepal 27
130 Nicaragua 27
130 Paraguay 27
130 Ukraine 27
136 Comoros 26
136 Nigeria 26
136 Tajikistan 26
139 Bangladesh 25
139 Guinea 25
139 Kenya 25
139 Laos 25
139 Papua New Guinea 25
139 Uganda 25
145 Central African Republic 24
146 Congo Republic 23
147 Chad 22
147 Democratic Republic of the Congo 22
147 Myanmar 22
150 Burundi 21
150 Cambodia 21
150 Zimbabwe 21
153 Uzbekistan 19
154 Eritrea 18
154 Syria 18
154 Turkmenistan 18
154 Yemen 18
158 Haiti 17
158 Guinea-Bissau 17
158 Venezuela 17
161 Iraq 16
161 Libya 16
163 Angola 15
163 South Sudan 15
165 Sudan 12
166 Afghanistan 11
167 Korea (North) 8
167 Somalia 8
Kind of surprised to see Pakistan less corrupt than Russia or Kazakhistan . India less corrupt than China is also surprising .
Bottom 10 are the usual Suspects
The 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index clearly shows that corruption remains a blight around the world. But 2015 was also a year when people again took to the streets to protest corruption. People across the globe sent a strong signal to those in power: it is time to tackle grand corruption.
José Ugaz,
Chair, Transparency International
WHICH COUNTRIES IMPROVED? WHICH GOT WORSE?
2015 showed that people working together can succeed in fighting corruption. Although corruption is still rife globally, more countries improved their scores in 2015 than declined.
Some countries have improved in recent years – Greece, Senegal and the UK are among those that have seen a significant increase in scores since 2012.
Others, including Australia, Brazil, Libya, Spain and Turkey, have deteriorated.
Dealing with many entrenched corruption issues, Brazil has been rocked by the Petrobras scandal, in which politicians are reported to have taken kickbacks in exchange for awarding public contracts. As the economy crunches, tens of thousands of ordinary Brazilians have lost their jobs already. They didn’t make the decisions that led to the scandal. But they’re the ones living with the consequences.
PETROBRAS
Brazil’s state-controlled oil giant
US$2 billion in reported bribes, kickbacks and money laundering
Tens of thousands of jobs lost
Over a million people protest on the streets
TAKE ACTION
CORRUPTION AND CONFLICT
GO HAND IN HAND
© Xinhua/Pan Chaoyue. In Syria, as in other countries, deep corruption has helped finance violent extremist groups and provide them with a powerful narrative for recruitment. Vast quantities of weapons have been sold in the region primarily by Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States often with little oversight.
LOWEST SCORERS CHARACTERISED BY BLOODY AND ENTRENCHED CONFLICT
Five of the 10 most corrupt countries also rank among the 10 least peaceful places in the world.
In Afghanistan, millions of dollars that should have gone on reconstruction have been reportedly wasted or stolen, seriously undermining efforts to sustain peace.
Even where there’s not open conflict, the levels of inequality and poverty in these countries are devastating.
In Angola, 70 per cent of the population live on US$2 a day or less. One in six children die before the age of five – making it the deadliest place in the world to be a child. More than 150,000 children die each year. But not everyone’s suffering.
Dubbed Africa’s youngest billionaire, Isabel dos Santos made her US$3.4 billion fortune from the national diamond and telecommunications business. She’s also the president’s daughter.
ARE HIGH SCORING COUNTRIES
EXPORTING CORRUPTION OVERSEAS?
© David Rengel. An activist in Cambodia stands on piles of wood that once formed the forest she grew up in. She says the government evicted her village to make way for foreign companies who want to use the area to grow sugarcane and rubber. She’s now fighting to regain the land.
MANY “CLEAN” COUNTRIES HAVE DODGY RECORDS OVERSEAS
Northern Europe emerges well in the index – it’s home to four of the top five countries.
But just because a country has a clean public sector at home, doesn’t mean it isn’t linked to corruption elsewhere.
Take Sweden for instance. It comes third in the index, yet the Swedish-Finnish firm TeliaSonera – 37 per cent owned by the Swedish state – is facing allegations that it paid millions of dollars in bribes to secure business in Uzbekistan, which comes in at 153rd in the index.
The company is now pulling out of business in Central Asia, but Sweden isn’t the only “clean” country to be linked to dodgy behaviour overseas. As our research shows, half of all OECD countries are violating their international obligations to crack down on bribery by their companies abroad.
TABLE OF RESULTS: CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX 2015
A country or territory’s score indicates the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). A country's rank indicates its position relative to the other countries in the index. This year's index includes 168 countries and territories. Click on the column headings to sort the results, or use the search to view the results for one country. Note that N/A means a country was not included in the index during a particular year. To learn more about the results and view the confidence intervals, please see our FAQs and download an XLS or JSON of the results.
Search
Rank Country/territory 2015 Score
1 Denmark 91
2 Finland 90
3 Sweden 89
4 New Zealand 88
5 Netherlands 87
5 Norway 87
7 Switzerland 86
8 Singapore 85
9 Canada 83
10 Germany 81
10 Luxembourg 81
10 United Kingdom 81
13 Australia 79
13 Iceland 79
15 Belgium 77
16 Austria 76
16 United States 76
18 Hong Kong 75
18 Ireland 75
18 Japan 75
21 Uruguay 74
22 Qatar 71
23 Chile 70
23 Estonia 70
23 France 70
23 United Arab Emirates 70
27 Bhutan 65
28 Botswana 63
28 Portugal 63
30 Poland 62
30 Taiwan 62
32 Cyprus 61
32 Israel 61
32 Lithuania 61
35 Slovenia 60
36 Spain 58
37 Czech Republic 56
37 Korea (South) 56
37 Malta 56
40 Cape Verde 55
40 Costa Rica 55
40 Latvia 55
40 Seychelles 55
44 Rwanda 54
45 Jordan 53
45 Mauritius 53
45 Namibia 53
48 Georgia 52
48 Saudi Arabia 52
50 Bahrain 51
50 Croatia 51
50 Hungary 51
50 Slovakia 51
54 Malaysia 50
55 Kuwait 49
56 Cuba 47
56 Ghana 47
58 Greece 46
58 Romania 46
60 Oman 45
61 Italy 44
61 Lesotho 44
61 Montenegro 44
61 Senegal 44
61 South Africa 44
66 Sao Tome and Principe 42
66 The FYR of Macedonia 42
66 Turkey 42
69 Bulgaria 41
69 Jamaica 41
71 Serbia 40
72 El Salvador 39
72 Mongolia 39
72 Panama 39
72 Trinidad and Tobago 39
76 Bosnia and Herzegovina 38
76 Brazil 38
76 Burkina Faso 38
76 India 38
76 Thailand 38
76 Tunisia 38
76 Zambia 38
83 Benin 37
83 China 37
83 Colombia 37
83 Liberia 37
83 Sri Lanka 37
88 Albania 36
88 Algeria 36
88 Egypt 36
88 Indonesia 36
88 Morocco 36
88 Peru 36
88 Suriname 36
95 Armenia 35
95 Mali 35
95 Mexico 35
95 Philippines 35
99 Bolivia 34
99 Djibouti 34
99 Gabon 34
99 Niger 34
103 Dominican Republic 33
103 Ethiopia 33
103 Kosovo 33
103 Moldova 33
107 Argentina 32
107 Belarus 32
107 Cote d'Ivoire 32
107 Ecuador 32
107 Togo 32
112 Honduras 31
112 Malawi 31
112 Mauritania 31
112 Mozambique 31
112 Vietnam 31
117 Pakistan 30
117 Tanzania 30
119 Azerbaijan 29
119 Guyana 29
119 Russia 29
119 Sierra Leone 29
123 Gambia 28
123 Guatemala 28
123 Kazakhstan 28
123 Kyrgyzstan 28
123 Lebanon 28
123 Madagascar 28
123 Timor-Leste 28
130 Cameroon 27
130 Iran 27
130 Nepal 27
130 Nicaragua 27
130 Paraguay 27
130 Ukraine 27
136 Comoros 26
136 Nigeria 26
136 Tajikistan 26
139 Bangladesh 25
139 Guinea 25
139 Kenya 25
139 Laos 25
139 Papua New Guinea 25
139 Uganda 25
145 Central African Republic 24
146 Congo Republic 23
147 Chad 22
147 Democratic Republic of the Congo 22
147 Myanmar 22
150 Burundi 21
150 Cambodia 21
150 Zimbabwe 21
153 Uzbekistan 19
154 Eritrea 18
154 Syria 18
154 Turkmenistan 18
154 Yemen 18
158 Haiti 17
158 Guinea-Bissau 17
158 Venezuela 17
161 Iraq 16
161 Libya 16
163 Angola 15
163 South Sudan 15
165 Sudan 12
166 Afghanistan 11
167 Korea (North) 8
167 Somalia 8
Kind of surprised to see Pakistan less corrupt than Russia or Kazakhistan . India less corrupt than China is also surprising .
Bottom 10 are the usual Suspects
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