Age of democracy in Ghana
Ghana: Age of democracy was 18 years in 2018. ◆ Volatile
Age of democracy in Ghana, 2001–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 18 years for age of democracy in 2018. That is the highest value across all 18 years on record.
The figure is up 5.9% on the previous year and up 125.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of democracy in Ghana peaked at 18 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 2001.
Ghana ranks 75th of 110 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of democracy in Ghana, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 1 years | — |
| 2002 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 2003 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 2004 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 2005 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 2006 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2007 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2008 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 2009 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 2010 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2011 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 2012 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 2013 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 2014 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 2015 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 2016 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 2017 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 2018 | 18 years | +5.9% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 18 years is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 16.5 years, 1.1× the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 18 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 15 years, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of democracy in Ghana changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5 years | 1 years | 9 years | 9 |
| 2010s | 14 years | 10 years | 18 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More social development data for Ghana
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 21,050 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0006 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of democracy in Ghana?
- Age of democracy in Ghana was 18 years in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of democracy recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 18 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest age of democracy recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 2001.
- How does Ghana rank for age of democracy?
- Ghana ranks 75th out of 110 countries with data for 2018.
- Is age of democracy rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 125.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a democracy.