The Countries With the Highest Perceived Corruption

The Countries With the Highest Perceived Corruption

by Natalie Morin

FindTheData used the most recent data from Transparency International to identify the countries with the highest perceived levels of public sector corruption.

Out of the 7 billion people who live on Earth, more than 6 billion live in countries with corrupt governments, according to anti-corruption coalition Transparency International. That's about 68 percent of countries worldwide, including half of the G20.

Of course, no country is truly free of corruption -- even though it may be less severe in some areas of the world, it still lurks in every governing body. With this in mind, FindTheData used the most recent 2015 data from Transparency International to identify the countries with the highest perceived levels of public sector corruption.

The global coalition uses expert opinion and surveys to assign each country a score called the "Corruption Perceptions Index" (CPI). The score is out of 100, where a lower score indicates a higher level of perceived corruption. The score takes into account whether the country has a free press, public access to the government's budget, integrity among those in power, a fair judiciary system (officials don't have a bias towards the rich) that is independent from the other parts of government.

FindTheData ranked each country by its CPI. Transparency International didn't include data for Greenland, so it is excluded from the list. Several of the countries had tied scores, making a true ranking less definitive.

Though they didn't crack the top 30 list, Transparency International wrote in a report that the level of perceived corruption in Australia, Brazil, Libya, Spain and Turkey has risen dramatically. Also, note that these countries that made the list are all characterized by some sort of violent social or political conflict.

[ Countries With the Lowest Perceived Corruption ]

#30. Uganda (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $714.57

#29. Papua New Guinea (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $2,268.16

#28. Laos (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $1,793.47

#27. Kenya (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $1,358.26

#26. Guinea (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $539.62

#25. Bangladesh (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 25
Overall rank: 139
GDP per capita: $1,086.81

#24. Central African Republic

Corruption Perception Score: 24
Overall rank: 145
GDP per capita: $2,560.50

#23. Congo Republic

Corruption Perception Score: 23
Overall rank: 146
GDP per capita: $3,147.07

#22. Myanmar (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 22
Overall rank: 147
GDP per capita: $1,203.84

#21. Democratic Republic of the Congo (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 22
Overall rank: 147
GDP per capita: $442.34

#20. Chad (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 22
Overall rank: 147
GDP per capita: $1,024.67

#19. Zimbabwe (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 21
Overall rank: 150
GDP per capita: $931.20

#18. Cambodia (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 21
Overall rank: 150
GDP per capita: $1,094.58

#17. Burundi (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 21
Overall rank: 150
GDP per capita: $286.0

#16. Uzbekistan

Corruption Perception Score: 19
Overall rank: 153
GDP per capita: $2,036.69

#15. Yemen (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 18
Overall rank: 154
GDP per capita: $1,408.15

#14. Turkmenistan (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 18
Overall rank: 154
GDP per capita: $9,031.51

#13. Syria (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 18
Overall rank: 154
GDP per capita: $2,079.99

#12. Eritrea (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 18
Overall rank: 154
GDP per capita: $754.89

#11. Venezuela (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 17
Overall rank: 158
GDP per capita: $16,614.60

#10. Guinea-Bissau (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 17
Overall rank: 158
GDP per capita: $567.82

#9. Haiti (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 17
Overall rank: 158
GDP per capita: $824.16

#8. Libya (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 16
Overall rank: 161
GDP per capita: $6,573.39

#7. Iraq (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 16
Overall rank: 161
GDP per capita: $6,420.37

#6. South Sudan (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 15
Overall rank: 163
GDP per capita: $1,115.09

#5. Angola (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 15
Overall rank: 163
GDP per capita: $5,423.61

#4. Sudan

Corruption Perception Score: 12
Overall rank: 165
GDP per capita: $1,875.84

#3. Afghanistan

Corruption Perception Score: 11
Overall rank: 166
GDP per capita: $633.57

#2. Somalia (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 8
Overall rank: 167
GDP per capita: $542.62

#1. North Korea (Tie)

Corruption Perception Score: 8
Overall rank: 167
GDP per capita: $1,800.0

Learn More About Countries on FindTheData

Article: Courtesy FindTheData.com.

"World News: "The Countries With the Highest Perceived Corruption"