12 Of The Most Corrupt Nations In The Americas

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (C) waves as he arrives to a meeting in the framework of the Fifth Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), at the Barcelo Bavaro Convention Center in Bavaro, Dominican Republic, on January 25, 2017. Venezuela has been named the most corrupt nation in the Americas by Transparency International. (Photo credit: FEDERICO PARRA/AFP/Getty Images)

By NAN Business Editor

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. Jan. 27, 2017: The list of most corrupt nations in the world for 2016 was this week unveiled by Transparency International, the politically non-partisan group that measures corruption in governments annually. Globally, the organization found that over two-thirds of the 176 countries and territories surveyed in this year’s index fall below the midpoint of our scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). So which nations in the Americas are perceived as the most corrupt based on last year’s data? Here are the top 12 compiled by NAN, based on the latest rankings from TI:

1: Venezuela

Topping the list as most corrupt country in the Americas is the South American nation of Venezuela. It was ranked at 166th globally, just two spots above the African nation of Guinea Bissau. Venezuela, which has been plagued by political and economic woes since the death of Hugo Chavez scored just 17 out of 100, showing no change from last year.

2: Haiti

Coming in at second on the Top Ten List is Haiti. The Caribbean nation ranked at 159th on the global ranking, on par with the Chad Republic.  Haiti scored 20 out of 100 this year, an increase over last year when it scored 17.

3: Nicaragua

Third on our Top 10 list of Most Corrupt nation in the Americas according to TI, is Nicaragua. The country ranked at 145th globally with a score this year of only 26 out 100, down from 27 last year.

4: Guatemala

The fourth most corrupt nation in the Americas is Guatemala, according to the TI ranking. The Central American nation ranked at 136 globally, which was on par with the European nation of Kyrgyzstan. Guatemala scored a low 28 this year, showing no improvement from last year.

5: Paraguay

Ranking at 123 globally and fifth on our Top 10 most corrupt Americas nation list according to TI is Paraguay. This South American nation’s corruption level is perceived to be similar to the African nation of Sierra Leone, which also ranked at 123 worldwide. The country scored 30 this year, up from 27 last year.

6: Mexico

Also coming in at 123rd globally and sixth on our list is Central American giant Mexico. The US southern neighbor scored just 30 this year, a drop by five points from last year.

7: Honduras

At seventh on our Top 10 list of most corrupt nation in the Americas according to TI is Honduras with a rank globally also of 123. Honduras scored just 30 out 100 this year, down from 31 last year.

8: Ecuador

Eighth on the most corrupt nation in the Americas according to TI is Ecuador with a rank globally of 120. Ecuador scored 31 out of 100 this year, down from 32 last year.

9: Dominican Republic

With a rank also of 120 globally, the Caribbean nation of the Dominican Republic takes the spot for the 9th most corrupt nation in the Americas according to TI. The DR scored just 31 this year, down from a score of 33 last year.

10: Bolivia

At 10th of our Top 10 list is the South American nation of Bolivia. The country was ranked 113 globally by TI, same as Vietnam. Bolivia scored just 33 out 100 this year, down from 34 last year.

11: Guyana

The South American CARICOM nation of Guyana comes in at 11th on our Top 12 Most Corrupt nation in the Americas list with a rank of 108. The country scored a low 34 this year, up from 29 last year.

12: Trinidad & Tobago

Rounding out our Top 12 list if the twin-island Republic of Trinidad & Tobago. The country’s scored 35 out of 100, down from 39 last year, landing it at 101 on the TI global ranking.

GLOBALLY

The lower-ranked countries in the index according to TI are plagued by untrustworthy and badly functioning public institutions like the police and judiciary while people frequently face situations of bribery and extortion, rely on basic services that have been undermined by the misappropriation of funds, and confront official indifference when seeking redress from authorities that are on the take.

The least corrupt nation on earth is Denmark and New Zealand followed by Finland and Sweden, according to the index.

In too many countries, people are deprived of their most basic needs and go to bed hungry every night because of corruption, while the powerful and corrupt enjoy lavish lifestyles with impunity,” said José Ugaz, Chair of Transparency International