MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay and Chile, least corrupt in Latinamerica says TI

Uruguay and Chile figure among the best ranked in Latinamerica in the latest report from Transparency International, a non government organization which rates countries according to corruption in the so called Corruption Perception Index or CPI.

The best ranked are Denmark, Sweden and New Zealand with 9.3 points out of 10. United States, Japan and Belgium figure in position 18 with 7.3 points. Uruguay and Chile (and France) figure in position 23 with 6.9 points while at the other end of the scale is Haiti, ranked 177; followed by Venezuela, 158; Ecuador, 151; Paraguay, 138; Nicaragua, 134; Honduras, 126 and Argentina in position 109 with 2.9 points. Brazil ranks 80 with 3.5 points and in 2007 was 72 but with the same points, 3.5. Mexico figures in position 72, with 3.6 points, similar to Peru and China. Colombia holds position 70 and 3.8 points, while Bolivia is ranked 102 with 3 points. Other interesting rankings include Australia and Canada both in position 9 with 8.7 points; Germany figures in position 14 with 7.9 points. The United Kingdom in 2008 was ranked 16 with 7.7 points down from position 12 and 8.4 points last year. Spain is located 28 with 6.5 points and South Korea, 40 and 5.6 points. Transparency International (TI) seeks to provide reliable quantitative diagnostic tools regarding levels of transparency and corruption, both at global and local levels. The annual TI Corruption Perceptions Index, CPI, first released in 1995, is the best known of TI's tools. It has been widely credited for putting TI and the issue of corruption on the international policy agenda. The CPI ranks more than 150 countries in terms of perceived levels of corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys. Transparency International formed an Index Advisory Committee (IAC) in 1996 to consult with on its global corruption measurement tools. The role of the Committee is to provide technical expertise and advice in the development and strengthening of the methodologies used by TI to measure corruption and governance. The Committee has a consultative role and TI has the ultimate responsibility in terms of decision making. Members of the committee (IAC members) are economists, statisticians, and social and political scientists who provide pro bono advice in the development of the various tools developed by TI. 2008 Corruption Perceptions Indexhttp://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2008