Data from a new corruption report points to a marked deterioration in governance in the north, with seven in 10 respondents describing corruption as a “very serious problem” and one in three businesspeople saying they had to pay a bribe last year to secure services.

The study, prepared by academics Omer Gokcekus and Sertac Sonan and published by Politis on behalf of the Friedrich Ebert foundation, places the north at 150th globally with a score of 24 out of 100, down from 26 the previous year, reflecting what researchers describe as a sustained decline over the past five years.

“Two out of three businesspeople believe corruption has increased compared to a year earlier,” the report found, with bribery most prevalent in the allocation of public land and buildings and the awarding of contracts and licences.

Based on responses from 352 participants, the findings show that 33 per cent had either paid a bribe, given a gift or offered a favour to obtain a service, most commonly to “expedite a process” or “complete a procedure”.

Sonan said the trajectory has shifted sharply since 2020.

“We’ve seen a steady decline, which goes hand in hand with a lot of scandals and arrests of high-level officials,” he said, adding that such cases have made corruption “more palpable”.

Perceptions of integrity across institutions have also weakened, for while the judiciary and law enforcement remain the most trusted comparatively, confidence in both is declining.

More than half of respondents said they had no trust at all in the executive, and 55 per cent described it as completely ineffective in tackling money laundering.

For the first time, respondents ranked high level public officials as the most corrupt group, overtaking cabinet level figures.

At the same time, tolerance for favouritism is rising, with 19 per cent now saying it is acceptable to use personal connections to speed up procedures, up from 5 per cent three years ago.

“This indicates that tolerance towards corruption has been steadily increasing,” the report said.

Corruption is also seen as a barrier to economic activity, with 63 per cent of respondents identifying it as a major obstacle to doing business, while only 7 per cent said it posed no obstacle.

The findings also highlight growing concern over electoral practices, with more than half of respondents believing vote buying is common and nearly a third saying threats against voters occur.