Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq has made modest gains in transparency but remains among the world’s most corrupt nations, ranking 136th out of 182 countries on the 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index, according to Transparency International.

The index ranks 182 countries and territories based on public sector corruption, scoring them from zero (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). Iraq received 28 points, up two from 2024.

In the Arab world, only Somalia, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, Libya, Eritrea, and Lebanon ranked lower, placing Iraq eighth out of 22 Arab countries.

Denmark topped the global rankings with 89 points, followed by Finland at 88, Singapore at 84, New Zealand at 81, Norway at 81, and Sweden at 80.

Among Arab states, the United Arab Emirates led at 69th globally, followed by Qatar at 58, Saudi Arabia at 57, Oman at 52, and Bahrain at 50. South Sudan, Somalia, Venezuela, Yemen, and Libya were at the bottom worldwide.

Notably, Transparency International compiles its annual corruption report using data collected from 13 international organizations, including the World Bank and the World Economic Forum.

Read more: Iraq's corrupt maze: Oil, bribes, and broken trust