SA's corruption score stagnates

SOUTH Africa has made no progress in improving perceptions of public-sector corruption over the past year, according to the 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), a stagnation analysts say continues to shape governance risks for Cape Town and the Western Cape.

- MURRAY SWART

The CPI, released this week by Transparency International, gives South Africa a score of 41 out of 100, unchanged from its 2024 score and still below the global average of 42, which itself declined for the first time in more than a decade.

The index measures perceptions of public-sector corruption, not proven or reported cases, drawing on 13 independent expert and business surveys across 182 countries and territories. Scores range from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean), with results below 50 regarded as signalling serious corruption challenges.

Although the CPI does not provide separate scores for provinces or cities, governance experts say the unchanged national result remains relevant for the Western Cape, where provincial and municipal authorities are responsible for large public budgets, infrastructure programmes and procurement processes.