On December 1, 2011 Transparency International published its 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index where Hungary ranked 54. out of 183 countries. This year first ranking countries are New Zealand, Finland and Denmark, while Somalia and North Korea ranked last.

The index scores a country’s level of corruption from 0 to 10 using 17 independent surveys. In 2011, Hungary scores 4.6, while two thirds of ranked countries score less than 5. Low–scoring countries are mostly characterized by weak public institutions and internal political conflicts. Changes over past years indicate that countries of higher level of corruption are hit more severely by economic crisis due to their public indebtedness. It is seen that good governance, transparent and efficient use of public funds are key factors to fight corruption and improve the competitiveness of a country.

„Last year, independent institutions playing a key role in fighting corruption have been jeopardized in Hungary which further deteriorated the country’s perception.” said Ádám Földes, head of the Hungarian chapter of the international organization.