Facts about corruption
Corruption as a share of GDP
The European Parliament estimated that corruption in Portugal costs the equivalent of 8% of GDP annually; slightly less than the % of the annual health budget.
Source: The costs of corruption across the EU, The greens/efa in the Euroepan Parliament, 2018
Weight of corruption in the public debt
It is estimated that the amount of known corruption cases is equivalent to 30% of the national public debt.
(Paulo de Morais*, 2015) *Co-founder and former Vice President of the Board of Transparency and Integrity Portugal. Former candidate for President of the Republic.
% of implemented measures
In 2019, according to the GRECO (entity of the Council of Europe that monitors the fight against corruption), only 1 of the 15 anti-corruption measures recommended in 2016 was fully implemented in Portugal (which corresponds to 6,7%);
place in ranking
In the last 21 years Portugal has regressed from 23rd (2000) to 32nd place in terms of public sector corruption.
(Corruption Perception Index, 2021)
Portugal has once again been downgraded from the “fully democratic country” category, reflecting clear signs of the increasing and corrosive lack of transparency and integrity in the management of the Portuguese State.
(The Economist, 2021)
In February 2021, the European Commission opened an infringement procedure against Portugal due to incorrect transposition of European rules into national legislation against money laundering.
The national anti-corruption strategy 2020-2024 is “vague, insecure, and cramped, overly legalistic, and very unambitious.”
(Associação Transparência e Integridade – Portugal, 2020)
