Ghana ranks 80 on TI’s Corruption Perception Index 2020

The 2020 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) by the Transparency International (TI) shows the increasing corruption is undermining healthcare systems and contributing to decline in democracy as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage the world.

The Index notes that countries that invest more in healthcare, are in better positions to provide universal health coverage and are less likely to violate democratic norms and institutions or the rule of law.

Ghana ranks 80 among 180 countries on the index, an improvement of five places from the 2019 index.

According to TI, the CPI ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, drawing on 13 expert assessments and surveys of business executives. It uses a scale of zero (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). Denmark and New Zealand top the index, with 88 points. Syria, Somalia and South Sudan come last, with 14, 12 and 12 points, respectively.

Commenting, Delia Ferreira Rubio, Chair of Transparency International said: “COVID-19 is not just a health and economic crisis. It is a corruption crisis. And one that we are currently failing to manage,” she added, “The past year has tested governments like no other in memory, and those with higher levels of corruption have been less able to meet the challenge. But even those at the top of the CPI must urgently address their role in perpetuating corruption at home and abroad.”

With an average score of 32, sub-Saharan Africa is the lowest performing region on the CPI, showing little improvement from previous years and underscoring a need for urgent action, TI says.

With a score of 66, the Seychelles consistently earns top marks in the region, followed by Botswana (60) and Cabo Verde (58). At the bottom of the index are Sudan (16), Somalia (12) and South Sudan (12).

The global anti-corruption organization indicates that this year’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) paints a grim picture of the state of corruption worldwide.

While most countries have made little to no progress in tackling corruption in almost a decade, more than two-thirds of countries score below 50, it says.

“Our research shows corruption not only undermines the global health response to COVID-19, but also contributes to a continuing crisis of democracy,” it added.