Transparency International and Transparencia Mexicana presented the new edition of the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). This instrument records the opinion of specialists, financial risk analysts, people from academia and businesses, on corruption in each of the 180 countries evaluated.
In 2024, Mexico obtained a score of 26 points out of 100 possible. The Corruption Perceptions Index scale goes from zero, the worst evaluation for a country, to 100, the best possible score. With 26 points, Mexico is ranked 140 out of 180 countries evaluated.
Globally, the highest CPI scores correspond to Denmark (90/100), Finland (88/100) and Singapore (84/100). No country reached 100 points. The worst-rated countries are Venezuela (10/100), Somalia (9/100) and South Sudan (8/100).
Among the economies that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Mexico is ranked last in the group: it is ranked 38th out of 38 economies evaluated. In the G20, which includes 19 countries plus the European Union, Mexico is ranked second to last, only above Russia (22/100 points).
In Latin America, Mexico is rated better than Guatemala (25/100), Paraguay (24/100), Honduras (22/100), Haiti (16/100), Nicaragua (14/100) and Venezuela (10/100) and is ranked below Brazil (34/100) and Chile (63/100), its main economic competitors in the region.
The results for Mexico of the Corruption Perceptions Index 2024 include information from 13 independent sources for the years 2023 and 2024. By integrating different measurements and two years into a single estimate, a single corruption event or scandal is prevented from altering a country’s rating. What the Corruption Perceptions Index measures is the trend and not specific cases.
The results of the Corruption Perceptions Index 2024 confirm the mandate of Mexican society: the government must more effectively confront corruption in Mexico. According to INEGI, in 2023, 83% of people considered that corruption in Mexico continues to be a “frequent or very frequent” problem. INEGI also reported that 6 out of 10 Mexicans were victims of corruption or police extortion in 2023.
The full report, as well as the methodology of the 2024 Corruption Perception Index, can be downloaded HERE.
Five keys to understanding Mexico’s results
in the 2024 Corruption Perception Index
Uncertainty about the scope and implementation of reforms in transparency, anti-corruption and the Judiciary. The sources of information used to estimate the 2024 Corruption Perception Index consider the evolution of Mexico from 2021 to August 2024, so the result of the constitutional reforms initiated in September 2024 was not known to national and international public opinion; nor was their implementation, which is still ongoing.
Impunity in cases such as Odebrecht, Pemex Agronitrogenados (the network headed by Lozoya), the Estafa Maestra and large-scale corruption cases such as those grouped under the name of “Segalmex”, the defunct federal agency in charge of agro-food security. In the case of Segalmex, there are at least 26 people linked to criminal proceedings, but they have not been found responsible by a judge. The sentences are still pending.
Low levels of sanctions in terms of administrative responsibilities identified by the higher oversight bodies: According to Transparencia Mexicana, using information provided by the oversight agencies themselves, of the 3,350 possible administrative responsibilities initiated by the 33 higher oversight bodies between 2017 and 2024, 281 cases (8.4%) ended in sanctions by administrative courts.
Growing number of state-level corruption cases involving organized crime. During the 2024 CPI measurement period, the national and international press reported a significant number of possible cases of corruption at the federal, state and municipal levels, which show possible links between governments and organized crime.
Companies identified as “ghost” or controlled by organized crime continue to be contracted by governments. There are increasing reports from control and oversight agencies of contracting with “ghost” companies, “invoicing” companies or companies linked to/controlled by organized crime at all three levels of government.
Methodological summary
of the Corruption Perceptions Index 2024
The results of the CPI 2024 consider the advances and setbacks in the corruption behavior of the 180 countries. The CPI 2024 aggregates data from 13 sources of information from 12 different institutions that collect perceptions of businessmen and women, as well as experts in the field of anti-corruption in the 180 countries evaluated. For a source to be considered valid, it must meet at least the following criteria: quantify perceptions of corruption in the public sector, have a rigorous methodology that classifies several countries on the same scale, must be developed by a credible institution, variation in scores, ratings for a substantial number of countries, the rating given must be from an expert from the country or business and the evaluation must be repeated at least every two years.
Data are standardized on a scale of 0-100, where 0 equals the highest level of perceived corruption and 100 equals the lowest. For a country to be included in the CPI, it must be scored in at least three sources and its score is the average of all standardized scores available for that country and, if necessary, rounded to whole numbers. Finally, the standard error and a 90 percent confidence interval reflecting the variance in the source data value are calculated. In addition, changes in CPI scores that are statistically significant are identified and reported.
Source: tm.org
