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The Corruption Perception Index (CPI) ranks countries based on public observation of government corruption using data from different sources compiled by Transparency International. Countries are ranked on a scale of one to ten, indicating how corrupt or clean they are. The index is used to raise awareness of corruption, but its value is debated due to the way data is compiled and the ranking system. A government can be considered corrupt if officials accept bribes, embezzle money, or use their power for personal gain. Transparency International primarily uses surveys and assessments to determine a government’s trustworthiness and transparency. The index’s main purpose is to raise awareness of corruption, but it does not provide actionable information to reduce corruption.
The Corruption Perception Index (CPI) is a global project that ranks countries based on public observation of government corruption. The data is derived from different sources and then compiled and interpreted by the Transparency International organization. Hundreds of countries, though not all, are ranked with a number each year on a scale of one to ten that indicates how corrupt or clean the country is. The index is generally used by Transparency International to raise awareness of corruption, although it is considered by many to be of little social value due to the way the data is compiled and the ranking system itself.
According to the Corruption Perception Index, a government can be considered corrupt for several reasons. In general, any government official who accepts bribes, embezzles money, or uses his power in any way for personal gain is considered corrupt, corrupting the government itself whether the agency as a whole supports the actions or not. Typically, the amount of laws or statutes a country has in place to prevent corruption is also factored into the Corruption Perceptions Index ranking.
Transparency International, a global organization, primarily uses surveys and assessments conducted by external institutions or organizations it deems reputable. The polls typically include questions regarding the public’s perception of the government’s trustworthiness. This information is combined with assessments conducted to determine how transparent a government is and how seriously it appears to take corruption in general. In most cases, corruption cases that come to light are not taken into account in the ranking of a specific country. That’s because laws regarding journalism, free speech, and citizens’ access to information vary greatly by location.
As of 2011, Transparency International requires three different sources of information to be available for a country in order for it to be included in the ranking. Compiled annually, the countries incorporated into the Corruption Perceptions Index vary each year depending on the information available. While the report is generated annually, an individual country’s ranking cannot generally be compared to previous years to indicate whether there has been a change in actual corruption. Typically, only public perceptions of corruption can be compared.
A scale of one to ten is used to rank each country in the Corruption Perceptions Index. A ranking of one indicates that the public believes the government is highly corrupt, and a ranking of 10 indicates that a government is believed to be “highly clean” or not corrupt at all. When there is not enough data to assign a ranking, a country is either assigned a zero or excluded entirely from the Corruption Perceptions Index.
The main purpose of this index is to bring global awareness on the issue of government corruption. Despite this, many researchers believe there is little value in the index outside of raising awareness, as the sources used to arrive at a ranking change every year, eliminating the possibility that an individual country’s rankings could be compared to the past rankings, or even that two countries can be compared with each other. The system itself is also mildly controversial, as the Corruption Perceptions Index does not provide any actionable information that a country, or the global community, could use to reduce corruption in specific countries.
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