India has fallen six positions on the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), to the 86th rank in the global corruption watchdog's annual ranking of countries. India's ranking in corruption perception has been consistently slipping since 2012, when it was in the 76th position.
China, meanwhile, is in the 78th position. The ranking of 180 countries has New Zealand and Denmark sharing the top slot, with a score of 88 out of 100 each. Among India's neighbours. Bhutan has a good ranking—at the 24th position. Bangladesh is at 146, Nepal 117, Pakistan 124 and Sri Lanka at 94. Somalia, Syria and South Sudan are at the bottom end of the list.
The US is in the 25th spot, Russia in the 129th.
Transparency International's (TI) report on the 2020 rankings says that ``persistent corruption is undermining healthcare systems and contributing to democratic backsliding amid the COvid 19 pandemic.'' Delia Ferreria Rubio, chair of TI said that Covid 19 is not just a health and economic crisis, it is also an economic crisis,which we are currently failing to manage. She said that countries with higher levels of corruption have been less able to meet the pandemic challenge. However, even countries which are on top, need to address their role in perpetuating corruption at home and abroad.
TI recommends that all governments need to strengthen oversight institutions, ensure open and transparent contracting, defend democracy and protect civic space and publish relevant data and guarantee access to information.
