World's most corrupt countries ranked in one map

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The majority of the map, which has been created by Statista, is coloured in a concerning reddish hue denoting a high level of corruption, with Somalia and North Korea topping the list - scoring eight out of a potential perfect score of 100. open image in gallery The most corrupt countries in the world Denmark, New Zealand, Finland and Sweden meanwhile scored the best in the research compiled by the non-governmental organisation Transparency International. The 20 'least corrupt' countries in the world 1 Denmark 92 2 New Zealand 91 3 Finland 89 4 Sweden 87 5 Norway 86 5 Switzerland 86 7 Singapore 84 8 Netherlands 83 9 Luxembourg 82 10 Canada 81 11 Australia 80 12 Germany 79 12 Iceland 79 14 United Kingdom 78 15 Belgium 76 15 Japan 76 17 Barbados 74 17 Hong Kong 74 17 Ireland 74 17 United States 74 Experts cited note-printing scandals and corruption investigations for its relatively poor performance. Jose Ugaz, the chair of Transparency International, explained in a release with the report: “Fast-growing economies whose governments refuse to be transparent and tolerate corruption, create a culture of impunity in which corruption thrives.” The UK, meanwhile, placed at 14: a result regarded as disappointing by researchers, who said the it should be in the top 10. The 20 'most corrupt' countries in the world 156 Cambodia 21 156 Myanmar 21 156 Zimbabwe 21 159 Burundi 20 159 Syria 20 161 Angola 19 161 Guinea-Bissau 19 161 Haiti 19 161 Venezuela 19 161 Yemen 19 166 Eritrea 18 166 Libya 18 166 Uzbekistan 18 169 Turkmenistan 17 170 Iraq 16 171 South Sudan 15 172 Afghanistan 12 173 Sudan 11 174 Korea 8 174 Somalia 8 However Afghanistan was also among the nations praised for making great improvements, rising by five points since 2013, alongside Jordan, Mali and Swaziland rising by four.