February 13, 2025
THIMPHU – Bhutan made a remarkable leap to 18th place in the 2024 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), up from 26th in 2023, according to the report released by Transparency International yesterday.
Bhutan scored 72 points out of 100 this year, breaking the deadlock where it remained stagnant at 68 points between 2019 and 2023.
Bhutan’s rise in the global ranking among 180 countries underscores its efforts at combating corruption, strengthening transparency, and fostering accountability.
The executive director of Bhutan Transparency Initiative, Dr Rinzin Rinzin (PhD), described the 2024 CPI score as historic. He credited the achievement to the collective efforts of key institutions across the country.
“In the past, limited freedom for civil society organisations (CSOs) and the media may have contributed to lower CPI scores. But things are improving now, and it is crucial for the government to continue supporting both the media and CSOs,” he said.
He said that important institutions such as the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Royal Audit Authority should work even harder to sustain this progress.
The CPI is the leading global indicator of public sector corruption, providing an annual comparative snapshot of 180 countries and territories. The index for 2024 is calculated using data from 13 external sources.
The CPI ranks countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. The results are given on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
According to the ACC, Bhutan’s improved ranking reflects effective corruption prevention strategies, including efforts to curb executive power abuse, promote transparency in public spending, and empower the media, CSOs, and the private sector in fostering integrity, among others.
The ACC called for the continued collaboration of all stakeholders to enhance justice sector capacity, improve business integrity, reinforce corruption-resilient climate actions, and boost regulatory oversight in public sector accountability.
Bhutan’s anti-corruption efforts focus on key interventions such as integrity vetting, a model public service code of conduct, lifestyle audits of public servants, intelligence-driven investigations, proactive research, and strengthening law enforcement and regulatory agencies. The country also emphasises engaging youth, media, civil society, and the private sector to foster a culture of accountability and transparency.
Bhutan had aimed to improve its CPI score to 69 by 2023 from the baseline of 67 in 2017.
The five least corrupt countries in the 2024 CPI are Denmark (90), Finland (88), Singapore (84), New Zealand (83), and Luxembourg (81). While Denmark and Finland retained their top positions, Singapore advanced to third place, overtaking New Zealand. Luxembourg climbed four spots to break into the top five.
At the other end of the spectrum, the most corrupt countries are South Sudan (8), Somalia (9), Venezuela (10), Syria (12), and Yemen (13).
In the South Asia region, Bhutan is the least corrupt nation. India ranks 96th, Maldives 96th, Sri Lanka 121st, Nepal 107th, Pakistan 135th, Bangladesh 151st, and Afghanistan 165th.
Globally, the fight against corruption remains challenging. Since 2012, only 32 countries have significantly reduced corruption, while 148 countries have either stagnated or worsened. The global average score of 43 points has remained unchanged for years, with over two-thirds of countries scoring below 50.
The CPI report stated that billions of people live in countries where corruption destroys lives and undermines human rights. The report also highlighted that corruption is intertwined with one of the biggest challenges humanity currently faces—climate change.
“Huge numbers of people around the world suffer severe consequences of global heating, as funds intended to help countries cut greenhouse gas emissions and protect vulnerable populations are stolen or misused,” the report stated.
The report also called out wealthy nations with high CPI scores for failing to lead in corruption-resistant climate action. Instead, these countries often prioritise the interests of fossil fuel companies and provide safe havens for illicit funds derived from environmental crimes and corruption.