Pakistan’s position on the 2024 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) has declined by two spots, ranking 135th out of 180 countries compared to 133rd in 2023, a fresh report revealed on Tuesday.
Transparency International’s CPI report assesses 180 countries and territories based on the perceived levels of corruption in the public sector, using a scale from zero (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
In a statement, Transparency International Pakistan mentioned that the CPI is released annually by Transparency International Berlin and that TIP has no role either in the collection of data or the calculation of the country’s score.
TIP Chairperson Justice (retd) Zia Perwez, in the statement, mentioned that in CPI 2024, the score of all countries in the region except Oman, China, Turkey and Mongolia has reduced.
Whereas, he noted, Pakistan’s score and rank on CPI 2024 has reduced by 2 points from 29 in CPI 2023 to 27 in CPI 2024. Pakistan’s rank has reduced by 2 points from 133 in CPI 2023 to 135 in CPI 2024, out of 180 countries.
“The downslide for the region shows that Pakistan is one of the countries that is holding up against the overall trend in the region,” the retired judge noted.
The statement mentioned that global corruption levels remain alarmingly high, with efforts to reduce them faltering, according to the latest report. The report, it said, has exposed serious corruption levels across the globe, with more than two-thirds of countries scoring below 50 out of 100.
The global average on the index has remained unchanged at 43, highlighting the need for urgent action against corruption and warning of a critical global obstacle to implementing successful climate action.
Against a backdrop of record-breaking global warming and extreme weather events, erosion of democracy and a decline in global climate leadership, the world has its back against the ropes in its fight against the climate crisis.
“Corruption is making that fight much harder, and the international community must address the link between corruption and the climate crisis,” the anti-corruption watchdog said.
TI Chairperson François Valérian said that corruption is an evolving global threat that does far more than undermine development – it is a key cause of declining democracy, instability and human rights violations.
“The international community and every nation must make tackling corruption a top and long-term priority,” the statement mentioned.
This is crucial to pushing back against authoritarianism and securing a peaceful, free and sustainable world, the statement mentioned.
“The dangerous trends revealed in this year’s Corruption Perception Index highlight the need to follow through with concrete action now to address global corruption,” he said.
