Our Promise: Rigor, Clarity, and Impact
Corruption is not just a headline; it is an infrastructure of extraction that diverts public money, distorts markets, and weakens the rule of law. Its daily consequences are painfully concrete: hospitals that run out of medicine, schools that degrade over time, roads that crumble while costs inflate, and police forces that lack independence to investigate the powerful. It erodes trust, making citizens believe justice is a private good. The antidote is not rage— it is proof plus institutions that can act.
Highest Corruption is built on three pillars. First, verified facts: documents, contracts, budgets, ownership registries, and court records. Second, comparative context: we draw on international indicators, case law, and best practices so readers can benchmark performance and risk. Third, practical pathways: we provide frameworks that organizations and communities can deploy today to reduce discretion, increase transparency, and route credible cases into courts.
Start Here
For a live stream of coverage, visit our curated News hub. For focused dossiers, start with the Mexico edition and our Toolkits library. Each page clearly labels what is verified, what is under investigation, and where readers can contribute documents safely.
Top 9 Countries with the Lowest CPI Scores (2024)
1) South Sudan —
Prolonged conflict, fragile institutions, and highly discretionary management of resource revenues. Weak checks and limited judicial capacity create space for extraction and patronage.
2) Somalia —
Incomplete state-building, dependence on localized arrangements, and high risks of bribery and illicit networks. Monitoring is constrained by security and geography.
3) Venezuela —
Reduced independence of key institutions and opacity in strategic sectors. Oversight deficits, migration pressure, and shrinking civic space reinforce capture risks.
4) Syria —
War fragmentation and disrupted accountability chains. Informal taxations and rent capture thrive amid humanitarian distress.
5) Libya —
Dual power centers and contestation over institutions. Hydrocarbon rents without transparency drive opportunistic contracting and diversion risks.
6) Eritrea —
Opaque government processes and limited press freedom. Lack of checks increases discretionary decision-making and weakens public financial management.
7) Yemen —
Chronic conflict and aid-distribution capture. Local network dependencies limit program integrity unless there is third-party verification.
8) Equatorial Guinea —
High oil dependency with low revenue transparency. Weak procurement oversight and access to information barriers heighten malfeasance risks.
9) Nicaragua —
Power concentration and weakened checks and balances. Legal and civic restrictions deter independent scrutiny and complicate whistleblowing.
Playbooks to Cut Corruption at the Root
Below are field-tested approaches that public bodies, civil society, and companies can implement. We designed them to be modular—use one at a time or deploy as a full integrity stack.
1) Open Budgets with Citizen-Readable Views
- Budget twins: publish the legal budget and a simplified “citizen budget” with spending timelines and project IDs.
- Live execution dashboards: show disbursements versus milestones. Provide CSV/JSON for auditing.
- Variance alerts: automated flags when line items deviate > 20% from plan without public justification.
2) Clean Procurement by Design
| Risk | Early Signal | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Custom specs for a single bidder | Only one vendor can meet oddly specific features | Independent review; benchmark against global catalogs |
| Overpricing | Costs > 20% above market medians | Require 3 comparable quotes; publish comparisons |
| Excess direct awards | Non-competitive contracts become routine | Hard caps; mandatory justification; automatic audits |
| Shell companies | Opaque ownership; conflict with public officials | Beneficial ownership checks; sanctions lists cross-match |
3) Enforcement that Bites
- Specialized anti-corruption units with operational autonomy and public KPI dashboards: reports → investigations → indictments → convictions → asset recovery.
- Illicit enrichment & asset declaration analytics with cross-checks (tax, customs, registries).
- Whistleblower protection with safe channels, anonymity options, and anti-retaliation measures.
4) Citizen Oversight That Works
- Works committees: residents verify physical progress versus payments; random spot checks.
- Open hearings: publish proposed contracts before award; accept written questions on record.
- Independent ombudsperson: empowered to compel documents and publish non-compliance notices.
How to Use This Site
- Browse News for fast context with linked sources.
- Open the Mexico edition for timelines and case materials.
- Deploy the Toolkits to harden your organization’s defenses.
- Send verifiable evidence to tips@highestcorruption.com. Never share data that could endanger you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does ranking countries help?
Rankings provide a macro map for prioritization. But reform happens locally—inside budgets, procurement systems, and courtrooms. We translate macro risk into micro actions that close loopholes.
Will you publish my documents?
We evaluate authenticity, redactions, and public interest. We corroborate with independent sources. Sensitive files may be summarized with protections for sources.
How do you handle uncertainty?
We label it. Where facts are not yet confirmed, we say so. Where there is a credible allegation, we present it as such, along with what would be needed to verify it.