Ukraine received 32 points out of 100 possible in the Corruption Perceptions Index in 2021 and ranked 122nd out of 180 countries, Transparency International Ukraine says. “Ukraine scored 32 points out of 100 possible in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) for 2021. Our indicator has decreased by one point, and now Ukraine ranks 122nd out of 180 countries in the CPI,” Transparency International Ukraine said on its website.
“The African state of Eswatini (Swaziland) is next to Ukraine. Zambia, Nepal, Egypt, the Philippines, and Algeria are one point ahead – with 33 points each,” the report says.
Comparing to its neighbors, Ukraine continues to be only ahead of Russia — the aggressor neighbor also lost 1 point and now ranks 136th in the list with 29 points. In addition, Hungary’s scores have decreased to 43 points (down 1 points, ranking 73rd). Belarus has lost as many as 6 points this year and ranks 82nd with 41 points,” it says.
“This year, Finland has joined the permanent leaders of the CPI Denmark and New Zealand; these three countries are now heading the Corruption Perceptions Index with 88 points. Somalia, Syria, and South Sudan remain at the bottom of the list,” according to the document.
“This decrease within the margin of error indicates a period of stagnation. The authorities are delaying the fulfillment of many important anti-corruption promises. On the one hand, a significant part of the anti-corruption reform was restored after the decision of the Constitutional Court in 2020, and basic laws were adopted to restart the HQCJ and the HCJ. On the other hand, there are still negative practices that invalidate the achievements – such as interference in the Tatarov’s case, delaying the election of the SAPO leadership, excluding certain public procurement tenders for the Constitution Day and the Independence Day from the scope of the specialized law. We must remember that deviation from the anti-corruption agenda plays into the hands of both internal and external enemies of Ukraine,” Andriy Borovyk, the executive director of Transparency International Ukraine, said.
“At the beginning of 2021, TI Ukraine provided three systematic recommendations to reduce the level of corruption in Ukraine, but none of them was fully implemented, and two were partially fulfilled. This year, we have identified 5 specific steps that will help in the fight against corruption in Ukraine: to complete competitions and select professional, independent and high integrity heads of the anti-corruption bodies: the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, the Asset Recovery and Management Agency, and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau; to adopt the national Anti-Corruption Strategy and the program for its implementation; to reform constitutional justice, considering the conclusions provided by the Venice Commission; to ensure transparent accounting of public property and continue the course of privatization; to minimize the risks of adopting draft laws which exclude procurement from the scope of the law of Ukraine on public procurement,” he said.
“If these steps are not fulfilled, Ukraine risks losing not only its position in the ranking, but also the trust of its citizens and international partners, Ukrainian and foreign investors. This, in turn, will worsen the economic situation and weaken Ukraine in the confrontation with the external enemy – the Russian aggressor,” the expert noted.
The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is a ranking calculated by the global organization Transparency International since 1995. The organization itself does not conduct its own surveys. The index is calculated based on 13 studies of reputable international institutions and think tanks. Nine sources are used to calculate Ukraine’s score.
Washington is ready to welcome any option to de-escalate tensions on the border between Russia and Ukraine, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price has said at a briefing.
“De-escalation can take many forms. We would welcome any of it,” Price said, answering a question in what form Washington imagines the de-escalation of tensions.
In particular, according to him, the start of de-escalation could be considered both the withdrawal of troops from the border with Ukraine and the change in Russian rhetoric on the Ukrainian topic.
Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal says there are currently no threats to the functioning of the national economy, except for disinformation pressure.
“There are no threats to the functioning of the national economy, except for information, especially disinformation pressure. There are no other factors that can destabilize the national economy today,” Shmyhal said after the NSDC meeting on Monday evening.
NATO is putting its armed forces on alert and sending additional ships and fighter jets to Eastern Europe in connection with the build-up of Russian military forces near Ukraine. “NATO Allies are putting forces on standby and sending additional ships and fighter jets to NATO deployments in eastern Europe, reinforcing Allied deterrence and defence as Russia continues its military build-up in and around Ukraine,” a statement published on the NATO website reads.The communiqué says that in the past days, a number of Allies have made announcements regarding current or upcoming deployments. Thus, according to the statement, Denmark is sending a frigate to the Baltic Sea and is set to deploy four F-16 fighter jets to Lithuania in support of NATO’s long-standing air-policing mission in the region. Spain is sending ships to join NATO naval forces and is considering sending fighter jets to Bulgaria.In addition, France has expressed its readiness to send troops to Romania under NATO command.The United States has also made clear that it is considering increasing its military presence in the eastern part of the Alliance.NATO is also expecting that the Netherlands will send two F-35 fighter aircraft to Bulgaria from April to support NATO’s air-policing activities in the region, and will put a ship and land-based units on standby for NATO’s Response Force.”There were no NATO forces in the eastern part of the Alliance before 2014,” NATO says.
Glovo courier delivery service is acquiring the Ukrainian company Zakaz (product delivery service Zakaz.ua), the main co-owner of which is Chernovetskyi Investment Group.
According to AIN.UA, Glovo has agreed to take over Zakaz.ua, payments to shareholders will be made both in cash and directly in Glovo shares, the deal is valued at up to $50 million.
As it became known to Interfax-Ukraine, Glovo plans to announce the takeover of the Zakaz.ua service at a press conference on January 27.
Interfax-Ukraine has not yet been able to get comments from Chernovetskyi Investment Group.
Market participants said the takeover of Zakaz.ua will strengthen Glovo’s position in the Ukrainian market and help the service develop the Q-commerce segment (delivery from dark stores).
