On Tuesday, Transparency International published a Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for the year 2023 and India ranked 93 out of 180 countries on the Index.
(The CPI uses a score from 0 to 100, 100 very clean and 0 highly corrupt.)
As per the report, most of the countries have made insignificant progress in tackling the problem of corruption. Out of 180 countries two-third countries scored below 50 on the scale. The report also added that according to the Rule of Law Index, the world is experiencing a dip in the functioning of justice systems. Thus, the countries with low CPI also scored low on the Rule of Law Index, showing the connection between corruption and access to the justice system.
Least Corrupt Countries
According to the report, Denmark has been at the top of the Index for six consecutive years due to its better-functioning judicial system. Finland and New Zealand secured second and third rank with scores of 87 and 85, respectively. Norway (84), Sweden (82), Singapore (83), Switzerland (82), Netherlands (79), Germany (79), and Luxembourg (78), are the top ten countries this year.
Most Corrupt Countries
As per the report, Due to some crises or primary armed conflict in the country, Somalia (11), Syria (13), South Sudan (13), Venezuela (13), and Yamen (16) are at the bottom of the report with the lowest scores.
Nicaragua (17), Haiti (17), North Korea (17), Equatorial Guinea (17), Libya (18) and Turkmenistan (18) also showed poor performance. 
Improvement and Decline in Performance
Eight countries witnessed improvement, these are Ireland (77), South Armenia (47), Moldova (42), Vietnam (41), Maldives (39), Angola (33), and Uzbekistan (33).
Twelve countries witnessed a decline, these countries are Austria (71), Poland (54), Argentina (37), Sri Lanka (34), Turkey (34), El Salvador (31), Liberia (25), Honduras (23), Myanmar (20), Nicaragua (17), and Venezuela (13).
Asian Countries Performance
As per the report, India with a score of 39 ranked 93rd of 180 countries in the CPI report witnessing relatively stable performance as it scored 40 (85th position) in 2022. This shows that the corruption in India is increasing with famous politicians and government officials being involved in the scams. Recently, AAP was accused of supporting illegal liquor trade and Manish Sisodia was arrested by CBI. There are such scams such as the 2010 Commonwealth Games scam, the Adarsh Housing Society scam, and Lalit Modi corruption case, etc.
“The case of India is particularly worrying. While the country’s score has remained stagnant over the past decade, some of the mechanisms that could help reign in corruption are weakening. There are concerns over the country’s democratic status, as fundamental freedoms and institutional checks and balances decay,” the report said.
Pakistan and Sri Lanka scored 29 and 34, respectively, showing poor performance because of relative debt burden and political instability. Afghanistan and Myanmar both have scored 20. Japan and Bangladesh scored 73 and 24, respectively. With its aggressive anti-corruption measures, China ranked 76 with a score of 42.
Performance of High-Ranking Democracies
As per the report, This year, high-ranking democracies such as the United Kingdom and the Netherlands are at a historic low, with a score of 77 and 79 and a rank of 20 and 8, respectively.
The World urgently in need of action
The report shows that most countries are failing to stop corruption and is concerning for the world. The countries are facing this problem as many countries are in conflict with each other, they are at war and are affecting global peace, which is both the cause and effect of corruption. The report stated, “Even countries with high CPI scores play a role in the threats that corruption poses to global security. For decades, they have welcomed dirty money from abroad, allowing kleptocrats to increase their wealth, power and destructive geopolitical ambitions.”
