Taiwan was 25th on last year’s Corruption Perceptions Index, its best ranking in 25 years, the Agency Against Corruption said in a statement yesterday.
Taiwan scored 67, the same as in 2023, but up three places from 28th among the 180 countries and regions evaluated by the index, which is published by Transparency International.
Taiwan was seventh among the 31 countries and regions in the Asia-Pacific region, behind Singapore (84), New Zealand (83), Australia (77), Hong Kong (74), Bhutan (72) and Japan (71), the agency said.
Photo: Tyrone Siu, Reuters
Taiwan’s score was higher than 86 percent of the countries and regions evaluated, the agency added.
The highest-ranked country was Denmark with a score of 90, followed by Finland (88), Singapore (84) and New Zealand (83), the report showed.
Luxembourg, Norway and Switzerland tied for fifth with scores of 81, it showed.
The global average was 43, it showed.
Transparency International’s office in Taiwan said that although Taiwan’s score was the same as in 2023, it rose in the rankings because Austria, France and the US dropped points.
However, Taiwan’s score in 2022 was 68, indicating that the fight for government integrity cannot rest on its laurels, the office said.
Taiwan was classified as a “complete democracy,” as well as having an “open” civil space, in which people can freely express their opinions and journalists can report without threat, it said.
However, the average score for complete democracies was 73, while countries with open civil spaces had an average score of 70, both of which Taiwan failed to achieve, posing a warning signal for the country, it said.
The index is compiled from a combination of at least three data sources from 13 corruption surveys and assessments, which are collected by reputable institutions, including the World Bank and the World Economic Forum, Transparency International’s Web site says.
Transparency International was established in 1993 and works globally to “stop corruption and promote transparency, accountability and integrity at all levels and across all sectors of society,” it says.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
RSS