According to a Transparency International report, South Sudan is the most corrupt country in the world.

According to Transparency International’s 2021 annual report, South Sudan was ranked last on the worldwide Corruption Perception Index, making it the world’s most corrupt country.

The non-governmental organization, located in Berlin, evaluates 180 nations and territories based on their perceived levels of public sector corruption on a scale of zero (very corrupt) to 100 (extremely corrupt) (very clean).

South Sudan ranked 180 out of 180 in the 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), only 11 points behind second-last Somalia and Syria, both of which scored 13.

Denmark, Finland, and New Zealand topped the 2021 Index with 88 points each. The same nations also rank in the top 10% in the world in terms of civil freedoms, according to the Democracy Index.

In response to the study, government spokesman and Minister of Information, Michael Makuei Lueth, denounced it as rubbish and accused the report’s writers of being corrupt for putting South Sudan lowest on the CPI.

“Who gave them the power to create the rankings?” Do they know where we’ll place them if we rate them as well?

“These are individuals attempting to make money at the cost of South Sudan… “They’ve been creating all this rubbish to seek financing,” Makuei said, dismissing the report.

“There is corruption all around the globe, and it differs by nation…

We do not know the extent of corruption in South Sudan, but what I do know is that what they said was their own view, since if ranking was a concern, what criteria were utilized to rank?

“And, if we’re talking about corruption, they’re even corrupt in their ranking of South Sudan’s corruption level!” he charged.

The anti-corruption monitor also said that nations with lower CPI scores had infringed human freedoms and harmed democracy.

“Human rights are more than just a nice-to-have in the battle against corruption.” Authoritarian policies undermine independent checks and balances, making anti-corruption initiatives reliant on the whims of a small group of people.

“The only sustainable path to a corruption-free society is to ensure people can speak freely and act collaboratively to hold authority accountable,” stated Delia Ferreira Rubio, Chair of Transparency International.

South Sudan has dropped one point in the CPI ranking since 2018, when it was ranked 178.