Most Ghanaians perceive “some,” “most,” or “all” of their government, law enforcement, and judicial officials as corrupt, according to the latest findings of the Afrobarometer survey. A majority of citizens gave the same assessment of informal leaders such as business executives and traditional and religious leaders.
Trends over time reveal that citizens' perception of corruption has increased dramatically over the past decade despite a slight decrease since 2012. A large majority of Ghanaians are of the opinion that corruption has increased compared to the previous year. In addition, those who say the
government has performed poorly in fighting this corrosive canker are in the majority. On the positive side, more than half of those interviewed expressed the belief that ordinary people can make a difference in the fight against corruption.
The findings are being released at a time when Ghanaians are crying foul over numerous corruption scandals1 involving public officials, with citizens in the news and on protest marches demanding accountability and action from the government.