Turns out almost 70 percent of the world’s nations are seriously corrupt

For 20 years, Transparency International has kept us informed about corruption around the world.  

"Corruption is the abuse of power for private gain," says the organization. "It hurts everyone who depends on the integrity of people in a position of authority." 

The harms of corruption are widespread. It can limit people's access to food, water, medicine, and education. It can lead to crumbling infrastructure and poor sanitation. It privileges the few at the expense of the many.

Every year, the group quantifies these harms in its Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), which ranks nations and territories and assigns each a corruption score. This year's CPI found that 69 percent of the world's countries are seriously corrupt or worse. Regionally, Eastern Europe and Central Asia ranked the worst, Western Europe and the EU the best.

Here are the winners and losers from the CPI 2013:

THE WINNERS

These countries are leading the anti-corruption pack. Here they are, from the absolute best to the very slightly less best. (Rank and score from 2012 appear in parenthesis. Note the ties for 1st, 3rd, and 5th.)

Denmark

Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt at the European Union leaders summit on June 28, 2013 (Getty Images)

Rank: 1(1)

Score: 91(90)

New Zealand

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key during in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (Getty Images)

Rank: 1(1)

Score: 91(90)

Finland

Prime Minister of Finland Jyrki Tapani Katainen at the World Economic Forum in 2012. (Getty Images)

Rank: 3(1)

Score: 89(90)

Sweden

Sweden's Prime Minister Frederik Reinfeldt at a European summit on Oct. 24, 2013 in Brussels. (Getty Images)

Rank: 3(4)

Score: 89(88)

Norway

Newly appointed Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg in Oslo on Oct. 16, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 5(7)

Score: 86(85)

Singapore

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO summit on Oct. 6, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 5(5)

Score: 86(87)

Following on the heels of these winners are the rest of the top 15: Switzerland, Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Luxembourg, Germany, Iceland, United Kingdom, and Barbados.

THE LOSERS

The worst of the worst, from the totally corrupt to the even more totally corrupt. (Note the three-way tie for last place, which is rank number 175. Also, South Sudan and Sudan were listed as a single country for the CPI 2012.)

Libya

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan accounces restart of oil exports on Oct. 30, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 172(160)

Score: 15(21)

South Sudan

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir attends a one-day summit on oil on Sept. 3, 2013 in Khartoum (Getty Images)

Rank: 173(173)

Score: 14(13)

Sudan

Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir speaks at the second Economic Forum in Khartoum on Nov. 23, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 174(173)

Score: 11(13)

Afghanistan

Afghan President Hamid Karzai addresses the Afghan loya jirga on Nov. 24, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 175(174)

Score: 8(8)

North Korea

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un marks 60th anniversary of Korean war armistice in Pyongyang on July 27, 2013. (Getty Images)

Rank: 175(174)

Score: 8(8)

Somalia

Prime Minister David Cameron (L) listens as Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (C) speaks in London. (Getty Images)

Rank: 175(174)

Score: 8(8)

At risk of falling this far are the remaining 15 most corrupt nations, beginning with the worst: Iraq, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Yemen, Haiti, Guinea-Bissau, and Equatorial Guinea.

THE REGIONAL WINNERS AND LOSERS

Transparency International

The CPI found that 69 percent of the world's nations received a corruption score below 50, meaning they are seriously corrupt. Here's how things look regionally.

Americas

Seriously corrupt: 66 percent

Best: Canada

Worst: Haiti

Asia Pacific

Seriously corrupt: 64 percent

Best: New Zealand

Worst: Afghanistan, North Korea

Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Seriously corrupt: 95 percent

Best: Turkey

Worst: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

EU and Western Europe

Seriously corrupt: 23 percent

Best: Denmark

Worst: Greece

Middle East and North Africa

Seriously corrupt: 84 percent

Best: United Arab Emirates

Worst: Sudan

Sub-Saharan Africa

Seriously corrupt: 90 percent

Best: Botswana

Worst: Somalia