Argentina has been re-evaluated with a low grade in matters of transparency in the Corruption Perception Index 2022, published by Transparency International. The management of Alberto Fernandez it only achieved 38 points out of a possible 100 and was ranked 94th among the 180 countries evaluated, in the same line as other countries in the region such as Brazil, but below Chile and Uruguay.
This worrying result is the crude testimony of a year lost in the fight against corruption in Argentina, according to Marcelo Bermolen, director of the Observatory of Institutional Quality of the Austral University. The NGO Poder Ciudadano, the Argentine chapter of Transparency International, stated that “Argentina owes a great reform” in terms of public ethics and procurement laws.
However, the Government has made some progress in anti-corruption agendaas in the Ministry of Public Works, but the recent resignation of Félix Crous as head of the Anti-Corruption Office and the failure to present a comprehensive reform project of the Public Ethics Law sent more than six months ago, spread doubts about the future of the fight against corruption in the country.
Critics affirm that it is urgent that the Government of Fernández and Kirchner seriously and effectively address the issue of corruption on the public agenda and carry out innovative and effective policies to improve transparency and strengthen the institutional framework in Argentina. Otherwise, we will continue to be evaluated with low marks and losing precious years in the fight against one of the biggest scourges of society.
Uruguay, Chile and Costa Rica, the best in the region
At the same rate, its neighbor to the south, Uruguaywhich the Argentine Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, had described as a “little brother” at the recent CELAC summit, ranked much better in terms of transparency despite the fact that the management of Luis Lacalle Pou is overshadowed by successive and severe cases of corruption and criminal acts: it obtained a score of 74 out of 100, ranking 17th below Iceland and above Belgium.
The top five highest scoring countries are: Denmark (90 points), Finland (87), New Zealand (87), Norway (84) and Singapore (83). Uruguay once again appears as the first Latin American country in the ranking, and the next is Chile, which scored 67. Below is Costa Rica with a questionable score of 54, already entering the area of intermediate severity corruption.