Annual Transparency Index Links Corruption with Increased Violence Globally

The 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), released yesterday by Transparency International, concludes that 95% of countries have made little to no progress fighting corruption since 2017. 

This 21st edition of the index ranks 180 countries and territories by experts’ perceived levels of public sector corruption on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). Denmark, which had last year’s highest score (92), retained the top spot with 87, followed by Finland and New Zealand. Ten countries, including Austria (71), Canada (74), Luxembourg (77), and Pakistan (27) have had significant score declines since 2017, and 26 countries — including the United Kingdom (73) and Qatar (54) — hit historic lows. For the 11th year in a row, the CPI global average remains unchanged at 43. 

In its accompanying report, Transparent International noted the link between corruption and violence, and cited Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a “stark reminder” of the threat that corruption and lack of government accountability pose to global security. (Russia’s score this year is 28.) Countries scoring lowest on the CPI also score low on the Global Peace Index, the report found: “Global peace is deteriorating, and corruption is both a key cause and result of this.” 

Read the full report here.