Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI)

Category: International Relations — Governance and Transparency

The Corruption Perceptions Index is published annually by Transparency International. It ranks countries according to perceived levels of corruption in their public sectors.

Key facts

  • Publishing organisation: Transparency International, an international non-governmental organisation.

  • First published: 1995.

  • The index covers countries and territories for which sufficient data are available.

  • Scores range from 0 to 100.

    • 0 indicates a perception of very high public-sector corruption.

    • 100 indicates a perception of very clean public sectors.

  • The index draws on assessments and expert and business surveys from multiple sources.

  • It measures perceived public-sector corruption, not every form of corruption or the exact amount of money lost to corruption.

Importance

  • Helps compare perceived public-sector corruption across countries.

  • Supports discussions about transparency, accountability and institutional quality.

  • Can inform governance reforms and anti-corruption strategies.

UPSC key pointers

  • Transparency International publishes the CPI; it is not a United Nations index.

  • A higher score means a lower perceived level of public-sector corruption.

  • The CPI measures perceptions, not a direct count of corruption cases.

  • Do not confuse it with the World Bank's governance indicators.