Singapore Maintains High Score In Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index 2020

The Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2020 has ranked Singapore the 3rd least corrupt country in the world out of 180 countries with a high score of 85, which we have successfully achieved since 2018. Singapore is again the only Asian country ranked in the top 10.

2. The TI-CPI ranks and measures countries by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. The 2020 index draws upon 13 expert assessments and surveys of business-people and country experts. Countries are then scored on a scale of zero, for highly corrupt, to 100, for very clean. TI’s 2020 CPI report highlighted that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, countries that lack the capacity to deal with the global health crisis are more vulnerable to threats of corruption.

3. The corruption situation in Singapore remains well under control. The annual corruption statistics released by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) indicate that the number of corruption-related reports received by the CPIB has been on a downward trend. Moreover, the number of public sector corruption cases has remained low over the years. Singapore has tackled corruption decisively and garnered international recognition for its incorruptibility and clean public sector. Besides our consistently good results under the TI-CPI, the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) ranked Singapore as the least corrupt country in its 2020 Report on Perceptions of Corruption in Asia, the US and Australia, a position we have held since 1995. In the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2020, Singapore was also ranked 3rd for absence of corruption in public office, the top Asian nation out of 128 countries ranked.

4. Results from the CPIB’s recent Public Perception Survey conducted in 2020 saw strong public confidence in our national anti-corruption framework. From the biennial survey of over 1,000 respondents in Singapore, 94% rated Singapore’s corruption control efforts to be effective, an improvement from 92% in 2018. Furthermore, 91% of the respondents indicated that political determination and heavy punishment were the top two most important factors that contributed to the low corruption rate in Singapore.

5. “Singapore has consistently achieved high ranking across international indices such as Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index. Our success comes from the public’s vigilance and resolve in keeping corruption at bay as a nation. We must not let our guard down in our fight against corruption despite the disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic.” said Mr Denis Tang, Director CPIB.

Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau