KATHMANDU, Jan 23: Nepal improved its corruption perception index in 2019, jumping to 113th spot from 124, according to Transparency International's annual Corruption Perception Index.
The corruption perception index unveiled by Transparency International Nepal (TI-N) on Thursday in Kathmandu ranked Nepal 113 out of 180 countries with a score of 34. Nepal improved by three spots compared to CPI 2018 when it was ranked 124th out of 180 countries with a score of 31.
However, Nepal falls under the category of 20 most corrupt countries in the world.
Countries in which elections and political party financing are open to undue influence from vested interests are less able to combat corruption, the CPI 2019 stated today.
“Frustration with government corruption and lack of trust in institutions speaks to a need for greater political integrity,” said Delia Ferreira Rubio, Chair of Transparency International. “Governments must urgently address the corrupting role of big money in political party financing and the undue influence it exerts on our political systems.”
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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).
More than two-thirds of countries score below 50, with an average score of only 43. Since 2012, only 22countries have significantly improved their scores, including Estonia, Greece and Guyana. Twenty-one have significantly declined, including Australia, Canada and Nicaragua, read the CPI index report.
The TI report shows several of the most advanced economies cannot afford to be complacent if they are to keep up their anti-corruption momentum. "Four G7 countries score lower than last year: Canada (-4), France (-3), the UK (-3) and the US (-2). Germany and Japan have seen no improvement, while Italy gained one point," read the global CPI report.
The CPI report suggests that countries that perform well on the CPI also have stronger enforcement of campaign finance regulations and broader range of political consultation. "Countries where campaign finance regulations are comprehensive and systematically enforced have an average score of 70 on the CPI, whereas countries where such regulations either don’t exist or are poorly enforced score an average of just 34 and 35 respectively," it said.
Sixty per cent of the countries that significantly improved their CPI scores since 2012 also strengthened regulations around campaign donations. “The lack of real progress against corruption in most countries is disappointing and has profound negative effects on citizens around the world,” said Patricia Moreira, Managing Director of Transparency International.“To have any chance of ending corruption and improving peoples’ lives, we must tackle the relationship between politics and big money. All citizens must be represented in decision making.”
Countries with broader and more open consultation processes score an average of 61 on the CPI. By contrast, where there is little to no consultation, the average score is just 32.
A vast majority of countries that significantly decreased their CPI scores since 2012 do not engage the most relevant political, social and business actors in political decision-making.
In its report, Transparency International has made various recommendations to countries to reduce corruption and restore trust in politics.
