Age of democracy in Jamaica
Jamaica: Age of democracy was 60 years in 2018. ◆ Volatile
Age of democracy in Jamaica, 1959–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2018, age of democracy in Jamaica stood at 60 years. That is the highest value across all 60 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.7% on the previous year and up 20.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of democracy in Jamaica peaked at 60 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1959.
Jamaica ranks 21st of 110 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of democracy in Jamaica, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | 1 years | — |
| 1960 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1961 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1962 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1963 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1964 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1965 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1966 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1967 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1968 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1969 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1970 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1971 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1972 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1973 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1974 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1975 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1976 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1977 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1978 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1979 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1980 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1981 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1982 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1983 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1986 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1987 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1988 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1989 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1990 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1991 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1993 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1995 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1996 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1999 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 2000 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 2010 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 60 years | +1.7% |
Jamaica compared with similar countries
- Jamaica's 60 years is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 24 years, 2.5× the median. (32 countries reporting)
- Jamaica's 60 years is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 30 years, 2.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of democracy in Jamaica 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1961 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1962 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1963 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1 years | 1 years | 1 years | 1 |
| 1960s | 6.5 years | 2 years | 11 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.5 years | 12 years | 21 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 26.5 years | 22 years | 31 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.5 years | 32 years | 41 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 46.5 years | 42 years | 51 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 56 years | 52 years | 60 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More social development data for Jamaica
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 31 (2022)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,642 (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 0.0009 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,642 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2022)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of democracy in Jamaica?
- Age of democracy in Jamaica was 60 years in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of democracy recorded in Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 60 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest age of democracy recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1959.
- How does Jamaica rank for age of democracy?
- Jamaica ranks 21st out of 110 countries with data for 2018.
- Is age of democracy rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Jamaica 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 — 60 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a democracy.