Index Shows Gambia Makes Gains In Fight Against Corruption
The Gambia has recorded significant gains in the fight against corruption, defying a global pattern of decline in the rule of law, according to the World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law Index 2024.
The report, released in Washington on 23 October 2024, shows The Gambia ranked 67th out of 142 countries globally on absence of corruption, placing it 6th in Sub-Saharan Africa and an impressive 2nd among 16 low-income countries worldwide.
While the rule of law declined in 57% of countries surveyed and has been in recession in 77% of countries since 2016, The Gambia is among the minority that improved.
Globally, 59% of countries improved on corruption in 2024, and The Gambia is listed among them, signalling concrete progress in curbing graft.
The broader Index places The Gambia 87th globally, up from previous years, with its score increasing by less than 1% but enough to secure 9th position out of 34 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Among low-income countries, the country ranks 3rd overall.
The WJP Index is the world’s leading source for independent data on the rule of law. It covers 142 countries, drawing on over 214,000 household surveys and 3,500 expert surveys, and measures eight factors.
The Gambia’s performance is mixed but encouraging.
Its best ranking is on Constraints on Government Powers, where it is 54th globally and 6th regionally. The report notes The Gambia is NOT among the 59% of countries where checks on executive power fell, meaning institutional checks held firm.
On absence of corruption, the 67th global ranking represents a major vote of confidence in post-2017 reforms.
On fundamental rights, the country ranks 81st globally and 11th regionally. The report flags that The Gambia is among the 63% of countries where this factor fell, indicating that rights protection remains the key challenge.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, Rwanda leads at 40th globally, followed by Namibia and Mauritius. At the bottom are Cameroon, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo at 136th globally. Twenty-one of 34 countries in the region declined.
Globally, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Germany top the Index. Venezuela, Cambodia, Afghanistan, Haiti and Myanmar are at the bottom.
WJP Co-founder and President William H Neukom said: “After years of rule of law declines it can be easy to focus on the negative. But to do so would ignore accomplishments in anti-corruption and the hard work occurring to improve justice systems globally.”
For The Gambia, ranking 2nd among low-income countries on corruption and 3rd overall in its income group, above many larger economies, shows that anti-corruption efforts are gaining traction.
Source: The Standard
