Bangladesh remains among the world's most corrupt countries despite a slight improvement in its score on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2025, highlighting what analysts describe as a persistent failure to translate political change into meaningful institutional reform.
According to the CPI 2025 released by Berlin-based Transparency International (TI), Bangladesh scored 24 out of 100, up by one point from 23 in 2024.
However, the country ranked 150th out of 182 countries, moving up from 151st the previous year. It ranked 13th from the bottom globally and among the lowest performers in South Asia.
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) unveiled the index at a press conference at its Dhanmondi office, where Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman painted a bleak picture of the country's anti-corruption efforts.
"The one-point increase in the score reflects the immediate positive expectations created by the July uprising regarding democratic and accountable governance," he said. "But this does not reflect the reality of the state reform process. The interim government failed to set an example of transparency. We lost a major opportunity."
Fragile Reform Process and Institutional Failure
TIB noted that the marginal improvement in Bangladesh's score does not indicate any substantial change in state or legal structures following the fall of authoritarian rule. Over the past one and a half years, the interim government has failed to take effective and exemplary measures against corruption.
According to Dr Iftekharuzzaman, entrenched interests within the bureaucracy and politically powerful groups have obstructed reform initiatives, while key proposals from the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and other oversight institutions have been ignored or left unimplemented.
"Even after the mass uprising, the nation's expectations have not been met, and the foundation for state reform remains fragile," he said. "Although the kleptocracy has ended, money laundering has not stopped; on the contrary, it has been reinstated."
TIB also argued that political parties have pursued reforms selectively rather than adopting a comprehensive approach. "Political actors must abandon the 'pick and choose' approach and pursue sustainable reforms required by the state," Dr Iftekharuzzaman added.
Regional and Global Comparison
In South Asia, Bangladesh ranked second-lowest after Afghanistan, which scored 16. Bhutan remained the region's best performer, scoring 71 and ranking 18th globally. India and the Maldives each scored 39, Sri Lanka 35, Nepal 34, and Pakistan 28.
Although Bangladesh's score improved by one point, other countries improved faster or avoided deterioration, causing Bangladesh to slip deeper into the bottom tier.
Globally, Denmark topped the index with a score of 89, followed by Finland (88) and Singapore (84). At the bottom of the ranking, South Sudan and Somalia scored 9, followed by Venezuela (10) and Yemen, Libya and Eritrea (13 each).
The global average score stood at 42, unchanged from last year and the lowest in more than a decade. Of the 182 countries assessed, two-thirds scored below 50, underscoring the worldwide persistence of corruption.
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