New Zealand remains the least-corrupt country in the world

Wednesday, 18/11/09

New Zealand has kept its number one ranking in the Transparency International corruptions perceptions index.

For some years this index has measured the perceived levels of public-sector corruption in countries around the world. This composite index, drawing on different expert and business surveys, scores 180 countries on a scale from zero (highly corrupt) to ten (highly clean).

The corruption perceptions index is a "survey of surveys", based on 13 different expert and business surveys. It ranks countries from zero (highly corrupt) to ten (highly clean).

New Zealand has retained its number one ranking in the 2009 index, released this week. New Zealand came in at 9.4 (marginally up on 2008), and other highest scorers in the 2009 index are Denmark at 9.3, Singapore and Sweden tied at 9.2 and Switzerland at 9.0.

Full survey results are available here

According to Transparency International these high scores reflect political stability, long-established conflict-of-interest regulations and solid, functioning public institutions. Overall results in the 2009 index are of great concern because corruption continues to lurk where opacity rules, where institutions still need strengthening and where governments have not implemented anti-corruption legal frameworks.