Corruption, or at least perceived corruption, decreased in Kosovo during 2017, according to Transparency International’s annual global analysis of anti-corruption efforts. The report, published yesterday, ranks Kosovo 85th out of the 180 countries investigated.

This marks a rise of 10 places since 2016 in the world according to the 2017 Corruption Perceptions Index.

Still, Kosovo scored only 39 points on a scale of 0 to 100 for 2017, with 100 marking the clearest transparency, and 0 marking the highest corruption, indicating a continued high level of perceived corruption in the public sector. Kosovo scored 36 points last year.

The 2017 Corruption Perceptions Index measures corruption through examining perceptions of experts and business executives on how well countries secure the rights of individuals and press to freedom of expression, governmental and commercial transparency, and protection of civil society organizations.

Kosovo saw significant progress in 2017 in the areas of independence of the judicial framework, press freedom and the fight against corruption in government.

“Constitutional amendments throughout 2016 have decreased the risk of political interference in the work of the prosecutorial system and judiciary,” explained Arben Kelmendi, Kosovo program manager for Transparency International. Kelmendi also said that journalistic efforts throughout Kosovo in exposing corruption cases contributed to progress in transparency.

The analysis of the index highlights the growing problem of violence against journalists and its correlation with the rate of corruption in the country in question.

“Given the current crackdowns on both civil society and the media worldwide, we need to do more to protect those who speak up,” said Patricia Moreira, the Managing Director of Transparency International.  

Most Balkan countries’ ratings fell in 2017, with Serbia named as a “captured political system” by Transparency International project manager Cornelia Abel. Kosovo and Bulgaria are the only two Balkan countries that improved their ratings.

The report made recommendations for all states scoring less than 45 on the index, calling on governments to promote laws on freedom of information, reduce media regulation and increase their own transparency through proactive disclosure of information in the public interest.