Country Profile

Uruguay is referred to as the cleanest country in Latin America and the one with the longest democratic tradition. Control of corruption has been explained by Uruguay’s democratic, political and economic development, which practically abolished clientelistic practices in politics and in the management of state resources. The country should now ensure that areas offering opportunities for corruption, such as state-owned enterprises, have strong transparency and accountability mechanisms in place. Measures to strengthen institutions tasked to fight corruption are also important to keep corruption at the lowest levels.

Uruguay is also an important financial centre for other countries in the region and its light financial regulations and rules on banking secrecy and anonymity could be misused by corrupt individuals and other criminals seeking for a place to launder their assets. Rules to prevent money laundering need to be properly implemented and enforced. Greater efforts also need to be made to ensure that foreign authorities can request/access information held by Uruguayan authorities.