Liberia ranks 138 on the 180-nation corruption index established by the good-governance group Transparency International.

VOA: standard.2009.08.14

Countries are ranked on "perception" of corruption because statistical collection of illegal activities "are deliberately hidden and only come to light through scandals, investigations and prosecutions, " the Transparency Index web site says.

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But in the rankings index of Transparency International, a Berlin-based lobby, African countries are generally perceived as being the most corrupt.

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Let's look at the U.S. Over the past few years, traditional measures of corruption, such as the Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International, have placed the U.S. among the least corrupt nations in the world, currently ranking No. 18 among 180 rated countries.

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