South Africa corruption on the rise

·4 Dec 2013

The 2013 edition of the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), shows that perceived levels of government corruption in South Africa have increased.

South Africa has slipped down three places from 69th to 72nd out of 177 countries in Transparency International’s index.

The Index gives South Africa a score of 42 out of 100, down from 43 in 2012, with zero being highly corrupt.

The country has slipped from a ranking of 38th in 2001, and 43rd in 2007.

2009 – 55th
2010 – 54th
2011 – 64th
2012 – 69th
2013 – 72nd

In the Corruption Perceptions Index 2013, Denmark and New Zealand tied for first place with scores of 91.

Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia ranked as the worst performers out of 177 countries, scoring just eight points each.

Rank	Country	2012 Score	2013 Score
1	Denmark	90	91
1	New Zealand	90	91
3	Finland	90	89
3	Sweden	88	89
5	Norway	85	86
5	Singapore	87	86
7	Switzerland	86	85
8	Netherlands	84	83
9	Australia	85	81
9	Canada	84	81

90% of countries in Sub-Saharan Africa scored below 50 points, with Botswana top (30th), and Somalia bottom of the list.

Cape Verde (41), Seychelles (47), Rwanda (49), Mauritius (52), Lesotho (55), Namibia (57), and Ghana (63) all place above SA in Africa.

Africa’s corruption

Rank	Country	2012 Score	2013 Score
30	Botswana	65	64
41	Cape Verde	60	58
49	Rwanda	53	53
52	Mauritius	57	52
55	Lesotho	45	49
57	Namibia	48	48
63	Ghana	45	46
72	South Africa	43	42
77	Senegal	36	41
77	Tunisia	41	41

More than two thirds of the 177 countries in the 2013 index score below 50.

“The Corruption Perceptions Index 2013 demonstrates that all countries still face the threat of corruption at all levels of government, from the issuing of local permits to the enforcement of laws and regulations,” said Huguette Labelle, chair of Transparency International.