Pakistan has ranked 140 out of 180 countries on the Corruption Perception Index 2021 according to a report by Transparency International released on Tuesday. In 2020, the country ranked 124 on the global corruption list.

As per the details in the Transparency International report, Pakistan’s score, which was previously 31, slipped by three points to 28 on the index this year.

Leader of opposition Shehbaz Sharif took the opportunity and lambasted the government for poor performance during its tenure. “Corruption is increasing rapidly under Imran Niazi and the world is now saying that he is a thief,” said Sharif in a statement on the report according to Dunya News.

“The CPI ranks 180 countries and territories around the world by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. A country’s score is the perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale of 0-100, where 0 means highly corrupt and 100 means very clean,” said the organisation.

On a global level, the report revealed that corruption levels remained at a standstill worldwide.

“This year, the global average remains unchanged for the tenth year in a row, at just 43 out of a possible 100 points. Despite multiple commitments, 131 countries have made no significant progress against corruption in the last decade,” said the corruption watchdog in a statement.

“Two-thirds of countries score below 50, indicating that they have serious corruption problems, while 27 countries are at their lowest score ever,” it added.

The top countries on the corruption index include Denmark, Finland and New Zealand with 88 points each. The ones at the bottom include South Sudan with 11 points, along with Syria and Somalia with 13 points each.

Transparency International is a global movement working in over 100 countries. The goal of the watchdog organisation is to end the injustice of corruption.

“We focus on issues with the greatest impact on people’s lives and hold the powerful to account for the common good,” said the organisation.

“Through our advocacy, campaigning and research, we work to expose the systems and networks that enable corruption to thrive, demanding greater transparency and integrity in all areas of public life,” it added.