Kenya has been ranked position 123 out of 180 countries assessed globally in the latest Corruption Perception Index (CPI) released by Transparency International, a Non-Governmental Organization that measures corruption.
According to the report Kenya scored 32 points out of 100 in 2022, up from 30 points in 2021.
CPI is an index which ranks countries based on their perceived levels of public sector corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys
The perceived amount of public sector corruption in a country is measured on a scale of 0-100, with 0 indicating severely corrupt and 100 indicating very clean.
The anti-corruption watchdog singled corruption as the core issue in many of the elections conducted last year including Kenya’s August 9 polls.
“Integrity of the vote itself also remained a concern. In Kenya(32), the election highlighted the urgent need for public scrutiny of political financing,” the report indicted.
Kenya’s 2022 election was marred with rampant cases of corruption with several civil society organisations in the country expressing their concern over the situation.
The report ranked Somalia at the very bottom of the CPI, both regionally and globally with 12 points out of 100.
The report attributes the poor performance to the circle of violence and instability for over three decades, with practically no means available to curb rampant corruption.
Denmark was ranked the least corrupt country at 90 points followed by New Zealand (87), Finland (87), Norway (84) and Singapore (83).
According to the report many countries like Kenya do not have a standalone law on whistleblower protection undermining the war against graft in the region.
However, in countries that do have such laws or policies, like Nigeria, their exists loopholes or implementation is seriously lacking.
The report argues that those who have taken a stand against corruption continue to face intimidation and threats due to lack of laws protecting them.
“This can be seen in Madagascar where the executive director and board chair of Transparency International’s national chapter are facing criminal charges after calling for investigations into companies involved in the Malagasy lychee trade,” the report says.
“Such cases demonstrate the enormous risks that anti-corruption activists and whistle blowers take when they speak up against corruption in many countries across Sub-Saharan Africa,”
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