Uruguay improves in Corruption Perceptions Index

With a score of 73/100, Uruguay once again leads the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) and ranks better than in its last annual measurement, first in Latin America and in 18th place worldwide. It thus stands out as one of the few countries to boast an index with no major fluctuations or declines over the years and even with improvements.

Two thirds of the countries score below 50, indicating serious corruption problems, while 27 countries have the lowest score in their history. This trend is largely due to different ways of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and measures in terms of movement and access to essential services.

This new measurement, coupled with Uruguay's recent ranking as the top Latin American country in the rule of law index by the World Justice Project and its multiple first place rankings in democracy, best place to live, civil liberties, social mobility, pandemic management and e-government, reaffirms Uruguay as a solid destination to invest, live and work.

The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is the most widely used global corruption ranking in the world; carried out since 1995 by the International Transparency organization, it measures the perception of corruption in the public sector of each country according to experts and businessmen.

The score given to each country is a combination of at least 3 data sources drawn from 13 different corruption surveys and assessments. These sources are compiled by various accredited institutions, including the World Bank and the World Economic Forum.

This year's CPI reveals that corruption levels are largely stagnant around the world. It ranks 180 countries and territories according to their perceived levels of corruption in the public sector, taking into account scenarios such as bribery, diversion of public funds, public officials misusing their positions for private gain, excessive bureaucracy, transparency laws on the finances of senior public officials, access to information on government actions, and legal protection for whistleblowers. The results are proposed on a scale from 0 (very corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Access International Transparency's full report on Uruguay here