Corruption Perceptions Index 2021

Governments should roll back any disproportionate restrictions on freedoms of expression, association and assembly introduced since the onset of the pandemic. Ensuring justice for crimes against human rights defenders must also be an urgent priority. Governments in advanced economies need to fix the systemic weaknesses that allow cross-border corruption to go undetected or unsanctioned. They must close legal loopholes, regulate professional enablers of financial crime, and ensure that the corrupt and their accomplices cannot escape justice. Public oversight bodies such as anti-corruption agencies and supreme audit institutions need to be independent, well-resourced and empowered to detect and sanction wrongdoing. Parliaments and the courts should also be vigilant in preventing executive overreach. As part of their COVID-19 recovery efforts, governments must make good on their pledge contained in the June 2021 UNGASS political declaration to include anti-corruption safeguards in public procurement. Maximum transparency in public spending protects lives and livelihoods. 1. UPHOLD THE RIGHTS NEEDED TO HOLD POWER TO ACCOUNT 3. COMBAT TRANSNATIONAL CORRUPTION 2. RESTORE AND STRENGTHEN INSTITUTIONAL CHECKS ON POWER 4. UPHOLD THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION IN GOVERNMENT SPENDING Recommendations Corruption may be a multifaceted problem, but it is one we know how to solve. To end the vicious cycle of corruption, human rights violations and democratic decline, people should demand that their governments: In authoritarian contexts where control rests with a few, social movements are the last remaining check on power. It is the collective power held by ordinary people from all walks of life that will ultimately deliver accountability. Daniel Eriksson Chief Executive Officer, Transparency International Secretariat Photo: Transparency International $ CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX 2021 5