Ghana moves up to 64th in 2012 Index but still not winning fight against corruption – TI
With a score of 45 out of 100, Ghana’s position has improved on the 2012 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released today December 5, 2012.
The country placed 64th, up from the 69th it ranked in the 2011 edition.
The Index put together by anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International (TI), ranked Ghana among 174 countries in the 2012 edition compared to 182 in 2011.
The surveys and assessments used to compile the Index include questions relating to the bribery of public officials, kickbacks in public procurement, embezzlement of public funds, and questions that probe the strength and effectiveness of public-sector anti-corruption efforts.
According to the TI, it has updated this year’s Index in terms of methodology for computing the CPI following a “comprehensive review and consultation process, both within the Transparency International movement and with the help of external experts”.
“For 2012, CPI, Transparency International used the most recent years’ available data (2011 -2012) from each source for each country.
To reflect this, the Corruption Perceptions Index is presented on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean),” TI said in a statement.
TI’s local chapter, the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) in a statement said based on the new calculation, Ghana’s CPI score in 2011 which was 3.9 if re-calculated would have been 46. “This means that Ghana’s position on the CPI has dropped implying that Ghana is still not winning the fight against corruption,” it said.
However, the score and rank of Ghana showed that the country also performed much better than several other African countries with Eritrea, Guinea Bissau and Guinea at the very bottom with a score of 25, 25 and 24, respectively even though six African countries performed better than Ghana with Botswana leading with a score of 65 and ranking 30 globally.
According to the TI, many African countries dominated the bottom of the CPI with Zimbabwe (163), Burundi (165), Chad (165), Sudan (173) and Somalia (174), ranking lowest with scores of 20, 19, 19, 13 and 8, respectively.
Most of these low scoring countries are also conflict countries, it noted.
On the global front, Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tie for first place with scores of 90, helped by strong access to information systems and rules governing the behaviour of those in public positions.
The TI indicated that two-thirds of the 176 countries ranked in the 2012 index scored below 50, showing that public institutions need to be more transparent, and powerful officials more accountable.
“Governments need to integrate anti-corruption actions into all public decision-making. Priorities include better rules on lobbying and political financing, making public spending and contracting more transparent and making public bodies more accountable to people,” said Huguette Labelle, the Chair of Transparency International.
“After a year of focus on corruption, we expect governments to take a tougher stance against the abuse of power. The Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 results demonstrate that societies continue to pay the high cost of corruption,” Labelle said.
Many of the countries where citizens challenged their leaders to stop corruption – from the Middle East to Asia to Europe – have seen their positions on the Index stagnate or worsen.
By Ekow Quandzie
Video: Huguette Labelle, Chair of Transparency International speaks on 2012 CPI