The Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index

The corruption perceptions index (CPI) ranks countries every year in terms of the level of corruption perceived to exist among public officials and politicians. The material used in the index is gathered from 14 different polls and surveys from seven independent institutions carried out on business people, academics and risk analysts, including surveys on both local and expatriate residents. The countries included on the list must have records of at least three TI accepted surveys that year. The first CPI was published in "Der Spiegel" in 1995, and since then it has been published yearly. The least corrupted countries have been pretty much the same over the years; there are 8 countries which have been in the top ten since the beginning of CPI. These countries are: Finland, New Zealand, Denmark, Singapore, Canada, Sweden, Netherlands and Norway.

The 2001 Corruption Perceptions Index:

1. Finland 9.9
2. Denmark 9.5
3. New Zealand 9.4
4. Iceland 9.2
4. Singapore 9.2
6. Sweden 9.0
7. Canada 8.9
8. Netherlands 8.8
9. Luxembourg 8.7
10. Norway 8.6
11. Australia 8.5
12. Switzerland 8.4
13. United Kingdom 8.3
14. Hong Kong 7.9
15. Austria 7.8
16. Israel 7.6
16. USA 7.6
18. Chile 7.5
18. Ireland 7.5
20. Germany 7.4
21. Japan 7.1
22. Spain 7.0
23. France 6.7
24. Belgium 6.6
25. Portugal 6.3
26. Botswana 6.0
27. Taiwan 5.9
28. Estonia 5.6
29. Italy 5.5
30. Namibia 5.4
31. Hungary 5.3
31. Trinidad & Tobago 5.3
31. Tunisia 5.3
34. Slovenia 5.2
35. Uruguay 5.1
36. Malaysia 5.0
37. Jordan 4.9
38. Lithuania 4.8
38. South Africa 4.8
40. Costa Rica 4.5
40. Mauritius 4.5
42. Greece 4.2
42. South Korea 4.2
44. Peru 4.1
44. Poland 4.1
46. Brazil 4.0
47. Bulgaria 3.9
47. Croatia 3.9
47. Czech Republic 3.9
50. Colombia 3.8
51. Mexico 3.7
51. Panama 3.7
51. Slovak Republic 3.7
54. Egypt 3.6
54. El Salvador 3.6
54. Turkey 3.6
57. Argentina 3.5
57. China 3.5
59. Ghana 3.4
59. Latvia 3.4
61. Malawi 3.2
61. Thailand 3.2
63. Dominican Rep 3.1
63. Moldova 3.1
65. Guatemala 2.9
65. Philippines 2.9
65. Senegal 2.9
65. Zimbabwe 2.9
69. Romania 2.8
69. Venezuela 2.8
71. Honduras 2.7
72. India 2.7
72. Kazakhstan 2.7
72. Uzbekistan 2.7
75. Vietnam 2.6
75. Zambia 2.6
77. Cote d´Ivoire 2.4
77. Nicaragua 2.4
79. Ecuador 2.3
79. Pakistan 2.3
79. Russia 2.3
82. Tanzania 2.2
83. Ukraine 2.1
84. Azerbaijan 2.0
85. Bolivia 2.0
85. Cameroon 2.0
85. Kenya 2.0
88. Indonesia 1.9
88. Uganda 1.9
90. Nigeria 1.0
91. Bangladesh 0.4

The score after each country is the average score of all surveys made in the country. The score of 10 is highly clean, while 0 is highly corrupted. For a complete list with more detailed information, check the Transparency International web site at www.transparency.org