The global anti-corruption organization Transparency International has published its Corruption Perception Index 2018 (CPI), where Ukraine has somewhat improved its score.
"It received 32 points, ranking 120th among 180 countries. This result is two points and 10 places higher than in 2017 (when Ukraine ranked 130th with 30 points)," according to Transparency International Ukraine.
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Among its neighbors, Ukraine's score is better only than that of Russia (28 points, it ranks 138th). The others have higher scores: Poland – 60, Slovakia – 50, Romania – 47, Hungary – 46, Belarus – 44, Moldova – 33 points.
Executive Director of Transparency International Ukraine Andrii Borovyk says that "this result is not consistent with fast European integration, reforms and elimination of corruption from all aspects of life to which our country claims to aspire. If the situation with corruption in Ukraine keeps changing at the same rate, it will take us decades to catch up with, say, Poland. The authorities have to be, and the civil society has long been, ready to double down on the effort to achieve this."
Ukraine's score has grown, among other things, thanks to a more positive assessment made by businesspeople, according to the research by which the index is informed. Automatically refunded VAT, the business ombudsman's activity and extended functioning of the ProZorro and ProZorro.Sale electronic procurement systems may have all contributed to this fact.
Transparency International Ukraine points out that the government has partially implemented its 2018 recommendations concerning the creation of the High Anti-Corruption Court. Ukraine has adopted the legislative framework, however, the full-scale launch of the court itself has been postponed to 2019.
