In a recent study by Transparency International published today, Ukraine lost one point compared to last year and now ranks 105th out of 180 countries.
CPI assesses the perceptions of public sector corruption and incorporates the perspectives of business representatives, investors, market researchers, and others, reflecting the private sector’s view of corruption in the public sector. It is important to keep in mind that CPI measures the perception of corruption, not the actual level of corruption.
The Transparency International Ukraine team marks that over the past two years, despite the full-scale war, Ukraine has taken systematic steps to combat corruption effectively—a progress that is clearly reflected in the CPI study results. Most of these steps resulted from Ukraine’s commitments to European integration and the receipt of international financial assistance.
The current results, as TI Ukraine writes, suggest that many reforms are being implemented only formally, or that their implementation is being deliberately stalled. Therefore, the drop in points in 2024 indicates that merely focusing on the programmatic implementation of Ukraine’s commitments is insufficient.
“Ukraine’s result does not come as a surprise. Other recent surveys have shown that Ukrainians believe corruption is on the rise. It tells us that corruption remains a serious challenge for Ukraine and that more needs to be done to prevent and fight corruption. Not least at the sectoral level – customs, law enforcement, judiciary, construction, health, education. We expect that the EU accession process will lead to further reforms and closing of gaps for corruption also at the sectoral level.
The other takeaway from the TI result is that the Ukrainian government is not succeeding in communicating the important progress that the independent anti-corruption institutions are making. More and more high-level cases are being investigated and brought to the High Anti-Corruption Court. More verdicts are delivered. More corrupt officials behind bars. Ukraine is “cleaning up” after many years where high-level officials had impunity. That story needs to be told loud and clear,” Allan Pagh Kristensen, Head of the EUACI comments.
Read more about the methodology, results of the CPI, and events that may have influenced it on the Transparency International Ukraine website: https://cpi.ti-ukraine.org/en/
