DISINFO: Ukraine among countries with highest level of organized crime
SUMMARY
Ukraine is officially on the list of countries with the highest level of organized crime.
RESPONSE
At the centre of this claim is the 2017-2018 Global Competitiveness Report published by the World Economic Forum, rating 137 economies based on 114 different criteria. Organized crime is but one of the markers estimating the level of loss that business and legitimate economic activity bear as a result of mafia activities, racketeering and extortion. Of the 137 countries analyzed by the World Economic Forum for the latest Global Competitiveness Index, Ukraine’s economy is in 81st place, moving up from 85th place from last year. A country’s standing in the index is based on its performance in twelve sectors, followed by numerous subcategories which gauge the ease or difficulty of doing business. In Ukraine the most problematic categories are inflation, corruption, political instability, tax rates and tax regulations. The organized crime subcategory in the Global Competitiveness Index assesses to what extent senior executives operating in a country feel organized crime impedes the conducting of business. A large number of respondents indeed felt that organized crime was an adverse factor. This subcategory does not assess the level of crime in the country as a whole and only a small number of those questioned thought that crime was one of the biggest problems in doing business in Ukraine. Headlines of the disinformation outlets stated that Ukraine is the cradle of criminality, Worse than Uganda, Ukraine is a world crime leader, Mafia controls business in Ukraine, and that Organized crime spreads its wings in Ukraine. None of these claims are confirmed by the Global Competitiveness Report. Further debunking by StopFake.