The dangers of corruption in Africa are manifold, affecting every facet of society. Tackling corruption requires a comprehensive and concerted effort from the government and civil society.
Implementing robust anti-corruption measures, strengthening institutions, and promoting transparency are crucial steps toward building a more just, equitable, and prosperous future for the people of Africa.
Transparency International, a global movement working in over 100 countries to end the injustice of corruption, whose data this list is based on, stated that “where corruption is the norm, vulnerable people have restricted access to justice while the rich and powerful capture whole justice systems, at the expense of the common good.”
According to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), two-thirds of countries in the world have some form of corruption issue.
A number of these countries are African, as the continent continues to fight against corruption.
Transparency International’s CPI ranks 180 countries and territories around the globe by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, scoring on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
While North Africa has shown some progress in tackling corruption over the years, Sub-Saharan Africa maintains the lowest corruption index of any region. Against a global average of 43, Sub-Saharan Africa averages 33.
With that said, here are the 10 most corrupt African countries heading into 2024.
| Rank | Country | Corruption Perception index | Global Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Somalia | 11 | 180th |
| 2. | South Sudan | 13 | 177th |
| 3. | Equatorial Guinea | 17 | 172nd |
| 4. | Libya | 18 | 170th |
| 5. | Sudan | 20 | 162nd |
| 6. | Democratic Republic of Congo | 20 | 162nd |
| 7. | Comoros | 20 | 162nd |
| 8. | Chad | 20 | 162nd |
| 9. | Burundi | 20 | 162nd |
| 10. | Eritrea | 21 | 161st |
Source:norvanreports