Transparency International’s 2004 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) measures the perceived level of corruption in 146 countries. Based on 18 different surveys, the CPI reflects the perceptions of business people and country analysts, both resident and non-resident. According to the 2004 Index a total of 106 out of 146 countries score less than 5 against a clean score of 10. Sixty countries score less than 3 out of 10, indicating rampant corruption. Corruption is perceived to be most acute in Bangladesh, Haiti, Nigeria, Chad, Myanmar, Azerbaijan and Paraguay, all of which have a score of less than 2. Countries with a score of higher than 9, with very low levels of perceived corruption, are predominantly rich countries, namely Finland, New Zealand, Denmark, Iceland, Singapore, Sweden and Switzerland. As Transparency International points out, oil-rich countries such as Angola, Azerbaijan, Chad, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Libya, Nigeria, Russia, Sudan, Venezuela and Yemen score particularly low on the Index.

A lack of transparency in the oil sector is often made responsible for rampant corruption involving western oil executives, elites, middlemen and local officials. Transparency International therefore urges western governments to oblige their oil companies to publish what they pay in fees, royalties and other payments to host governments and state oil companies. On the basis of data from previous sources an increase in perceived corruption can be observed compared to last year for Bahrain, Belize, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Oman, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Originated by Eldis