Transparency has come to hold a central position in the belief systems behind governance indices. The concept of ''transparency'' is referred in the Transparency International''s fight against corruption and in World Economic Forum''s attempts at enhancing economic competitiveness. Standard & Poor''s, an international credit rating organisation, names its news letter as ''Transparency''. Still, few governance indices or rankings actually measure transparency, indicating its poor measurability. On the other hand the governance indices themselves are a type of transparency, quantifying various aspects of national administration, now assessed from a distance. As a new policy instrument of transnational governance, governance indices and country rankings have also contributed to the global diffusion of transparency as a principle of governance. My paper examines critically the causal beliefs regarding transparency present in the governance indices and the role of governance indices in the global drive for transparency. The paper argues that the current emphasis on economic performance through transparency often override the concerns for democratic accountability.
