Corruption increased in 36 African countries in 2022 – Report

A new Afrobarometer report has revealed that corruption increased drastically in 36 African countries between 2021/2022.

The report said corruption increased a lot by 46%, and increased somewhat by 12%, but stayed the same at about 20% in the countries surveyed.

The survey stated that almost six in 10 Africans (58%) say that corruption in their countries increased over the past year.

The survey stressed that this has worsened significantly in 12 of the 30 countries surveyed in both 2014/2015 and 2021/2022.

Senegal leading with 39 percentage points, Burkina Faso (+29 points), Gabon (+24 points), Cameroon (+23 points), and Côte d’Ivoire (+22 points) were the countries where corruption was reduced, the report added.

“Almost six in 10 Africans (58%) say that corruption in their countries increased over the past year. The situation has worsened significantly in 12 of the 30 countries surveyed in both 2014/2015 and 2021/2022, most dramatically in Senegal (where perceptions of increasing corruption have risen by 39 percentage points), Burkina Faso (+29 points), Gabon (+24 points), Cameroon (+23 points), and Côte d’Ivoire (+22 points).

The report further indicated that there has been a drastic improvement in Benin, where the proportion who report that corruption increased dropped by -61 percentage points,” Afrobarometer said in its report.

“A majority of Africans say that corruption has increased in their countries, but an even larger proportion fear retaliation should they report corrupt acts to the authorities,” Afrobarometer added.

Maame Akua Amoah Twum, Afrobarometer communications coordinator for anglophone West and North Africa, revealed the findings during a webinar on corruption hosted by the Data for Governance Alliance in collaboration with the African Union Advisory Board Against Corruption.

The webinar was titled “Civil Society Organisations’ Contribution to Driving Accountability in Africa’s Corruption Fight.”