PH on corruption ranking: A challenge, reason for hope

Malacañang on Saturday said the country's improved standing in the Corruption Perception Index is both a challenge and a reason for hope.

"The Government takes note of the slight improvement of the Philippines' standing in the Corruption Perception Index of Transparency International. We consider this result as both a challenge to do better and a reason for hope that the country is headed in the right direction," Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said in a statement.

"In line with the President's clarion call for the entire Government 'to show in deeds, not in words, that it is deserving of the people's trust,' earnest efforts are already being undertaken to implement the digital transformation mandate of the Administration in order to streamline institutional processes and curtail opportunities for graft and corruption," he added.

"With the necessary transformational measures being put in place, let us be optimistic and assured that the Government will not fail or falter in its steadfast commitment to effectively provide efficient and transparent public service," Bersamin said.

The Philippines ranked 115th in the 2023 Corruption Perception Index, a one-notch improvement from its previous 116th ranking, the Transparency International disclosed.

According to the global organization, the Philippines obtained a score of 34 out of 100, which was an increase from its score of 33 in 2022.

The Transparency International said that the 2023 CPI has shown that corruption is thriving across the world.

The group 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).

It noted that more than two-thirds of countries scored below 50 out of 100, which strongly indicates that they have serious corruption problems.

Global average was stuck at only 43, while the vast majority of countries have made no progress or declined in the last decade, Transparency International said. —KG, GMA Integrated News