By A Correspondent
Zimbabwe has been designated the most corrupt nation in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) for 2024, according to the latest findings from Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).
The country’s ranking has worsened, reaching its lowest point since 2015, when it made headlines for the infamous missing US$15 billion in diamond revenues.
The CPI, which assesses the perceived level of corruption in the public sector, gives Zimbabwe a score of 21, a decline of 3 points from the previous year.
This puts Zimbabwe at 158th out of 180 countries globally. The scale of the CPI ranges from 0, indicating highly corrupt, to 100, which signifies a very clean and transparent public sector.
Zimbabwe’s low score reflects an ongoing struggle with corruption, as the country continues to grapple with issues such as bribery, embezzlement of public funds, and a lack of accountability among government officials.
These elements, which the CPI measures, include the misuse of public office for personal gain, excessive bureaucracy, nepotism, and the diversion of public resources for private benefit.
In addition to the internal factors, Zimbabwe’s ranking has been influenced by a lack of stringent anti-corruption mechanisms.
The country continues to face challenges in enforcing laws that require public officials to disclose financial information, provide protection for whistleblowers, and ensure access to government data.
As a result, Zimbabwe’s public sector remains opaque, hindering efforts to combat systemic corruption.
Despite slight improvements in the years following 2015, Zimbabwe’s performance has once again declined, reversing the gains it made in previous years. The highest score in recent years was recorded in 2023, with a score of 24, but the country has since slipped back into the bottom ranks.
In a broader African context, Zimbabwe now ranks among the top 10 most corrupt countries on the continent, alongside war-torn nations such as Sudan, Somalia, and Libya. Africa continues to dominate the lower end of the global CPI, with the continent accounting for the majority of the world’s most corrupt nations. In particular, countries affected by conflict, authoritarianism, and weak governance institutions consistently receive low scores.
Globally, Denmark has maintained its position as the least corrupt country, holding the top spot on the CPI for the seventh year in a row with a score of 90. Finland and Singapore follow closely behind with scores of 88 and 84, respectively. On the other end of the spectrum, war-torn and politically unstable nations occupy the bottom ranks, with South Sudan, Somalia, and Venezuela at the very bottom. Other countries in the bottom 10 include Syria, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Libya, Yemen, Nicaragua, Sudan, and North Korea.
The latest data from Transparency International underscores the continued struggles many countries face in addressing corruption. For Zimbabwe, the country’s corruption problem remains a significant barrier to political and economic stability, with widespread consequences for governance, development, and the lives of ordinary citizens.
As the 2024 CPI highlights, tackling corruption in Zimbabwe will require a concerted effort to strengthen governance structures, enforce anti-corruption laws, and ensure greater transparency in both the public and private sectors. Until such reforms are put in place, the nation’s ranking is unlikely to improve.