Berlin,  1 December  2011 –  Corruption  continues  to plague  too  many  countries  around the world, according  to Transparency International’s  2011 Corruption  Perceptions  Index released today. It shows some governments failing to protect citizens from corruption, be it abuse of public resources, bribery  or secretive decision-making.  
 
Transparency  International  warned  that  protests  around  the  world,  often  fuelled  by corruption  and  economic  instability,  clearly  show  citizens  feel  their  leaders  and  public institutions are neither transparent nor account able enough.   
 
“This  year we have  seen corruption on protestors’ banners be they rich  or poor. Whether in  a Europe hit by  debt crisis  or  an Arab world starting  a  new  political era, leaders  must heed  the  demands for better governm ent,” said Huguette  Labelle, Chair of  Transparency International.
 
Corruption Perceptions Index 2011: The results
 
The  index  scores 183  countries  and  territories  from  0  (highly  corrupt) to  10  (very  clean) based on  perceived levels of  public sector corruption.  It uses  dat a  from 17  surveys that look  at   factors  such  as  enforcement  of   anti-corruption  laws,  access  to  information  and conflicts of interest.
 
Two thirds of ranked countries score less than 5.  
 
New  Zealand  ranks  first,  followed  by  Finland  and  Denmark.  Somalia  and  North  Korea (included in the index for the first  time), are last.  
 
“2011  saw  the  movem ent  for  greater  transparency  take  on  irresistible  momentum,  as citizens  around  the  world  demand  accountability  from  their  governments.   High-scoring countries  show  that  over  time  efforts  to  improve  transparency  can,  if  sustained,  be successful and benefit  their  people,”  said Transparency International Managing Director, Cobus de Swardt.
 
Most  Arab  Spring  countries  rank  in  the  lower  half  of  the  index, scoring  below  4. Bef ore the  Arab  Spring,  a  Transparency  International  report  on  the  region  warned  that nepotism, bribery and patronage were so deeply  engrained in daily lif e that even existing ant i-corruption laws had little impact.  
 
Eurozone  countries  suffering  debt  crises,  partly  because  of  public  authorities’  failure  to tackle  the  bribery  and  tax  evasion  that  are  key  drivers  of  debt  crisis,  are  among  the lowest-scoring EU countries.  
 


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Transparency International is the global civil society organisation leading the fight against corruption

For the full ranking and regional tables, go to: www.transparency.org/cpi

Information on how the CPI is prepared is available in the FAQ.
 
 
 
Media Contact
Thomas Coombes
+49 30 34 38 20 662  
Email: press@transparency.org