Transparency International

In 2001, Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index ranked Nigeria as the second most corrupt country in the world, scoring just 1.0 out of 10 on their clean governance scale. Only Bangladesh ranked lower that year. The Berlin-based anti-corruption watchdog had been monitoring global corruption levels since 1995, but this ranking represented a particularly stark assessment of Nigeria's governance challenges during the early years of the Fourth Republic under President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The dismal ranking reflected decades of military rule, oil revenue mismanagement, and weak institutions that had characterized Nigeria since independence. During the 1990s under military leader Sani Abacha, corruption had reached extraordinary levels, with billions of dollars allegedly looted from state coffers. When civilian rule returned in 1999, the new democratic government inherited a reputation for systemic corruption that extended from federal ministries down to local government levels, affecting everything from oil contracts to basic public services.