The 12 most corrupt countries in the world

The recent FIFA scandal shone a spotlight on the prevalence of global corruption.

A recent report from Verisk Maplecroft, a risk analysis and forecasting company, now identifies where similar occurrences happen most often in the world.

Defining corruption as "exerting influence, often through the provision of money or favours, to obtain a service," Verisk examined the economies of 198 countries from August 2012 to August 2014 based on reports by Transparency International, Freedom House, and the US Department of State and determined that developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East suffer the most from corrupt practices.

Throughout the two-year period, Verisk tracked five factors: the frequency of corruption, the duration of the corruption, the spread of corruption, the severity of the corruption, and the ability of those committing corruption to operate with impunity. 

Analysts at Verisk Maplecroft then quantified this data into a predefined scoring system on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being at extreme risk for corruption and 10 being at low risk for corruption.

In particular, Verisk determined that 45% of the countries deemed at "extreme" risk for corruption are located in Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, oil, gas, and mining firms are the businesses most frequently exposed to demands for bribery, which dragged several Middle Eastern countries, as well as Russia, toward the bottom of the rankings.

"[Corruption] risks are particularly prevalent in developing economies,” Trevor Slack, legal and regulatory analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, wrote in the report “Factors such as weak rule of law and a lack of institutional capacity in these markets undermine efforts to combat entrenched systems of patronage, while exposure to corrupt public officials and a reliance on third party agents is also higher.”

Out of the 198 countries, Verisk found 73 at "extreme" risk for corruption, 64 at "high" risk, 38 at "medium" risk, and 23 were at "low" risk. (Denmark was rated as the least corrupt country, the US was rated 23rd least corrupt).

SEE ALSO: Fans don't care if FIFA is corrupt

#10 South Sudan (tied)

Score: 0.15/10

A recent film by Al Jazeera entitled "South Sudan: Country of Dreams" examines how the world's newest country (created in July of 2011) spiraled into civil war.

"Despite its oil wealth, extensive corruption plagued the fledgling democracy," Al Jazeera reported. "Less than three years after gaining independence, the new country descended into civil war, leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of its people and the displacement of almost two million."

#10 Russia (tied)

Score: 0.15/10

Here are just a few recent examples of shady Russian practices:

1. The imprisonment of politician Alexei Navalny, a Moscow mayoral candidate and one of Vladimir Putin's biggest critics.

2. Winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup bid by allegedly buying votes from FIFA delegates.

3. The alleged close relationship between the Russian government and the construction companies involved in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

#10 Myanmar (tied)

Score: 0.15/10

A May 2015 profile on the southeast Asian country by the BBC reported that the Burmese economy is "one of the least developed in the world and is suffering the effects of decades of stagnation, mismanagement, and isolation. Key industries have long been controlled by the military, and corruption is rife."