With 3.7 out of 10 points, Egypt came in at 98th place on this year's Corruption Perception Index, issued by rights watchdog Transparency International (TI), out of 178 countries on the list. Egypt was ranked 11th among Arab countries after Qatar, the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Tunisia, Morocco and Djibouti. It was followed by Algeria, Syria, Lebanon, Mauritania, Libya, Yemen, Sudan, Iraq and Somalia. In 2009, Egypt was ranked 111th in the world and 10th among Arab countries. The index ostensibly assesses the awareness of corruption among local politicians and government officials. TI defines corruption as "abuse of power and breach of trust for personal gain." Rankings are based on questions asked about transparency, accountability and corruption in the public sector. Other categories include conflict of interest, transfer of funds, anti-corruption methods, rule of law and the use of political power for personal benefit. Qatar was the first Arab country on the index, coming in 19th worldwide with 7.7 points. The UAE came in second on the Arab index--and 28th place in the world--with 6.3 points. Oman came in at 41st place with 5.3 points, followed by Bahrain at 48th place with 4.9 points, and Jordan and Saudi Arabia, both of which came in at 50th place with 4.7 points each. Kuwait ranked 54th worldwide with 4.5 points, followed by Tunisia with 4.3 points. Morocco ranked 85th with 3.4 points, followed by Djibouti at 91st place with 3.2 points. Algeria came in at 105th place with 2.9 points, followed by Lebanon and Syria at 127th place with 2.5 points each, and Mauritania at 143rd place with 2.8 points. Libya and Yemen ranked 147th (2.2 points each); the Comoros Islands 154th (2.1 points); Sudan 172nd (1.6 points); Iraq 174th (1.5 points); and Somalia 178th, the bottom of the list (1.1 points). Denmark was ranked the least corrupt county worldwide, with 9.3 points, immediately followed by New Zealand and Singapore. The United States, meanwhile, came in at 22nd place worldwide. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
