THE CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS Index (CPI) is the most widely used global corruption ranking in the world. It measures how corrupt each country’s public sector is perceived to be, according to experts and business people. The score ranges from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean), where 0 equals the highest level of perceived public sector corruption and 100 equals the lowest level of perceived public sector corruption.
THIS TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL’S Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2024 has been released, with Liberia performing dismally, even though making marginal progress by moving 2 points up the CPI ladder. In the Corruption Index of 2023, Liberia stood at 25/100, and ranked 145 among 180 countries. Today, the nation scores 27/100, and ranks 141/180.
ANALYZING LIBERIA’S SCORE on the CPI 2024, the Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia (CENTAL) observed that, despite the fact that this latest ranking shows marginal progress in the new administration’s anti-corruption efforts, much work still needs to be done, as the country has remained one of the biggest global decliners since 2014, dropping by 10 points.
CENTAL POINTED OUT that the country’s performance on the CPI has been hugely disappointing, cementing its position among the worst performers on the content and the sub-region and corroborating CENTAL’s 2023 State of Corruption Reports, which revealed that 90% of Liberians think the corruption level is high in the country, with low citizens’ confidence in the Executive branch of government to tackle the problem.
CENTAL EXPRESSED DEEP concern over Liberia’s consistently poor performance, especially its place among the world’s Worst Decliners. “Even though we acknowledge the 2-point increase under the first year of the Boakai-Koung government, we caution against complacency, as immunity for corruption remains high. While President Boakai has acted to suspend and dismiss some officials accused of corruption, he has failed to do likewise for others, giving an indication of partiality in his anti-graft efforts. We hold the view that the President’s move to declare and publish his assets, incomes, and liabilities is laudable, but his gross failure to punish his non-compliant officials raises questions about his ability to fully match his anti-corruption commitments with deeds,” the transparency group maintained.
BASED ON THE findings of the 2024 CPI report, CENTAL said significant improvement in the fight against corruption is possible but only when “business as usual” in the fight becomes an issue of the past, as promised by President Boakai and his administration.
