Transparency International has once again ranked South Sudan as the world’s second most corrupt country.

South Sudan falls just one point below Somalia.

According to the 2019 Corruption Perceptions Index released yesterday, the level of corruption in the country is perpetuated by lack of “political accountability to facilitate anti-corruption mechanisms.”

It noted that years of civil wars have also contributed to high-level corruption in some cases, involving members of the first family.

The publication confirms previous reports by The Sentry, a US-based watchdog, which revealed that political and military incentives favor extreme violence and grand corruption over peace and good governance in South Sudan.

But the government has often dismissed such reports, saying they are unsubstantiated and meant to blackmail the country.

Transparency International’s annual index publications assess the perceived levels of public sector corruption in 180 countries.

In the latest report, the world’s most corrupt country is Somalia sitting at number 180 followed by South Sudan at 179, while Denmark and New Zealand are the least corrupt countries.

According to Transparency International, the country’s poor rule of law in the Sub Saharan Africa has created room for everything from “petty bribery to high-level political corruption”.