Which has higher varieties of democracy, Sierra Leone or Zambia?

Zambia, at 0.497 against 0.471 in Sierra Leone as of 2025.

How many years of comparable data are there for Sierra Leone and Zambia?

115 years are reported by both, from 1911 to 2025.

Where does this data come from?

V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Varieties of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Sierra Leone vs Zambia: Varieties of democracy

Sierra Leone

0.471

in 2025

Zambia

0.497

in 2025

Sierra Leone rank

91st

Zambia rank

88th

Varieties of democracy over time

Sierra Leone
Zambia

How they compare

Zambia currently reports 0.497 against 0.471 in Sierra Leone, a difference of 0.026.

That makes Zambia's figure about 1.1 times Sierra Leone's.

The two have swapped places 11 times across 115 shared years of data; in 1911 it was Sierra Leone ahead.

Sierra Leone ranks 91st and Zambia ranks 88th of 176 countries.

Across the 12 decades both report, Sierra Leone averaged higher in 8 and Zambia in 4.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Sierra Leone	Zambia	Difference	Ahead
1910s	0.074	0.0381	0.0359	Sierra Leone
1920s	0.0755	0.0491	0.0264	Sierra Leone
1930s	0.077	0.0668	0.0102	Sierra Leone
1940s	0.0774	0.0757	0.0017	Sierra Leone
1950s	0.1627	0.1035	0.0592	Sierra Leone
1960s	0.288	0.2234	0.0646	Sierra Leone
1970s	0.2101	0.2163	0.0062	Zambia
1980s	0.1878	0.1921	0.0043	Zambia
1990s	0.2038	0.4278	0.224	Zambia
2000s	0.4695	0.495	0.0255	Zambia
2010s	0.5214	0.4426	0.0788	Sierra Leone
2020s	0.5245	0.4713	0.0532	Sierra Leone

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher varieties of democracy, Sierra Leone or Zambia?: Zambia, at 0.497 against 0.471 in Sierra Leone as of 2025.
What is the difference in varieties of democracy between Sierra Leone and Zambia?: 0.026, with Zambia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Sierra Leone and Zambia?: 115 years are reported by both, from 1911 to 2025.
How do Sierra Leone and Zambia rank globally for varieties of democracy?: Sierra Leone ranks 91st and Zambia ranks 88th of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Varieties of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Sierra Leone vs Zambia: Varieties of democracy. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 10 October 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/compare/varieties-democracy-vdem/sierra-leone/zambia/

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About this data

Indicator: Varieties of democracy
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,649 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 09 October 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which political leaders are elected under comprehensive suffrage in free and fair elections, and freedoms of association and expression are guaranteed.