Corruption is a climate issue – DW – 02/11/2025

Corruption is threatening global efforts to tackle climate change, the graft monitor Transparency International warned in a report publish on Tuesday.

“Corruption is obstructing effective climate action by hindering the adoption of ambitious policies,” a statement from the watchdog said.

Transparency International’s “Corruption Perceptions Index” for 2024 shows that many countries, whether they are dealing with rising temperatures or have hosted UN climate summits, have poorer scores than before.

For example, Brazil, which hosts this year’s COP30 climate talks, scored 34, its lowest-ever rating — signifying a higher corruption level.

“Corrupt forces not only shape but often dictate policies and dismantle checks and balances,” Transparency International CEO Maira Martini said.

Germany falls behind

Germany was found to be lagging behind in its fight against corruption. In this year’s ranking on corruption perception, Germany fell to 15th place out of the 180 countries surveyed. The previous survey had seen Germany in 12th place. The lack of transparency in financing political parties was stated as the main problem.

At the presentation of the report in Berlin, Alexandra Herzog, chairwoman of Transparency Germany, singled out the far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the new populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) and their large donations — some from abroad. She cited an Austrian businessman’s million-euro donation to the AfD as an example. According to Herzog, this has jeopardized fair political competition and undermined citizens’ trust in democracy ahead of Germany’sFebruary 23 general election.

How did other countries rank on the index?

Many wealthier countries that have previously taken a leading role in climate talks, including Canada, the United States and New Zealand, also saw their performance slide. 

“These nations hold the greatest responsibility to lead on ambitious climate goals, reduce emissions at scale and build resilience worldwide,” according to Transparency International.

The annual report gives nations with a higher perceived risk of public sector corruption a lower score on a scale from zero to 100.

According to the 2024 rankings, 85% of the global population is living in countries that scored under 50.

The countries that received the lowest scores are largely gripped by conflict, such as Sudan, Venezuela, Somalia, Syria, Eritrea and Yemen. South Sudan slid to the bottom of the list, while Denmark had the best ranking.

The report also found that 47 of the 180 surveyed countries had their lowest score since the watchdog started using its current methodology for its global ranking in 2012. Those countries included Germany, Austria, Brazil, France, Haiti and Hungary.

Over the past five years, some countries, including Kosovo, Maldives and Kuwait, have improved their corruption scores significantly.

Edited by: Natalie Muller