Bahrain in joint 50th in graft index

Bahrain has been ranked as joint 50th in the recently published Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).

The Kingdom amassed a score of 51 points in this year’s CPI - a global corruption index compiled by Transparency International. Croatia, Hungary and Slovakia were the other countries who were ranked 50th alongside Bahrain. It is noteworthy that the Kingdom has improved from its score from 2014, when it scored 49. Qatar and UAE were noted as the least corrupted in the region, ranking 22 and 23 respectively. Denmark was ranked the least corrupt country, Finland and Sweden came second and third respectively.

“2015 showed that people working together can succeed in fighting corruption. Although corruption is still rife globally, more countries improved their scores in 2015 than declined. Some countries have improved in recent years – Greece, Senegal and the UK are among those that have seen a significant increase in scores since 2012. Others, including Australia, Brazil, Libya, Spain and Turkey, have deteriorated. Five of the 10 most corrupt countries also rank among the 10 least peaceful places in the world. In Afghanistan, millions of dollars that should have gone on reconstruction have been reportedly wasted or stolen, seriously undermining efforts to sustain peace. Even where there’s not open conflict, the levels of inequality and poverty in these countries are devastating,” Transparency International stated.

“The 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index clearly shows that corruption remains a blight around the world. But 2015 was also a year when people again took to the streets to protest corruption. People across the globe sent a strong signal to those in power: it is time to tackle grand corruption,” said José Ugaz, Chair of Transparency International.