Q COSTA RICA – Costa Rica ranks second in the Índice de Capacidad para Combatir la Corrupción (CCC) – Capacity to Combat Corruption Index – prepared by the Americas Society/Council of the Americas.
The study evaluates and classifies 15 countries in the region based on their effectiveness in detecting, punishing, and preventing corruption, based on 14 variables divided into three axes: legal capacity, democracy and public institutions, and civil society and the media.
In the 2023 edition, Costa Rica obtained a general rating of 6.76 out of 10.
Democracy and political institutions was the highest score with 7.19; This category looks at the quality and applicability of campaign finance legislation, legislative and governance processes, and the overall quality of democracy.
The second highest category was legal capacity with 6.69 points, while civil society and the media was the lowest with 6.30 points.
In general terms, Costa Rica fell 5% in its final score compared to last year when it obtained 7.11.
“Costa Rica experienced setbacks in fundamental indicators related to the attorney general’s office, the financing of electoral campaigns and the quality of the press. President Rodrigo Chaves, in office since May 2022, ran with an anti-establishment and anti-corruption program. His administration has presented a bill to provide protection and, in some cases, financial rewards to those who denounce and serve as witnesses in criminal proceedings related to acts of corruption,” the study indicates.
One of the most marked setbacks was in the variable that evaluates the quality of the press and investigative journalism (12%), with government criticism of independent media being one of the main reasons.
Uruguay was the best-qualified country with 6.99, while Venezuela (1.46) ranked last.
