Deputy Economy Minister: Georgia ranks in top 20 European states, leader in Eastern European, Central Asian regions in CPI 2022

Georgia has been ranked 41st  among 180 countries and territories worldwide for the first time since the start of the Index and has been a leader in the Eastern European and Central Asian states in the 2022 Corruption Perception Index, Mikheil Dundua, Georgian Deputy Finance Minister said on Friday.

Dundua stressed Georgia was in the 20th place among European countries along with Italy, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic with equal 56 points, and ranked at the top in Central Asia, Caucasus and the Black Sea regions.

“According to Bribery Risk Matrix data published in November 2022, Georgia is ranked 33rd out of 197 countries in terms of the absence of risk of bribery”, the Deputy Minister said.

Georgia has been ranked ahead of 14 NATO and European Union member states, sharing the same position with the Czech Republic, he said, adding the countries, who had submitted requests to join the EU, remained behind Georgia in the ranking.

Since 2014, Corruption Perception Index, which measures sector corruption according to experts and businesspeople, is improving every year. As a result, countries have to meet stricter criteria to get a good position in the ranking. Georgia is consistently ranked as one of the most advanced and successful countries in the world, Dundua noted.

He also pointed out that until 2014, this index had not been produced in Georgia, however, under other indices such as the Washington-based Heritage Foundation’s government integrity index as of 2004-2012, the Georgian governance had been assessed as “corrupt and dishonest”, with official status as "repressive". While, according to the 2023 rankings, Georgia is among 40 countries in the world, ahead of 15 member states of the European Union and NATO, with an official assessment of “good faith” and the status of "moderately free", the Deputy Minister noted.

Corruption indices, studies, surveys and expertise are collected worldwide and summarised yearly by the World Bank, Dundua said, adding under its data, “the country [Georgia] has achieved great progress” in recent years and was named among the best countries in the Black Sea region and the world in combating corruption.