Age of democracy in Malawi
Malawi: Age of democracy was 15 years in 2018. ◆ Volatile
Age of democracy in Malawi, 1994–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 15 years for age of democracy in 2018. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
The figure is up 7.1% on the previous year and up 200.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of democracy in Malawi peaked at 15 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1994.
That places Malawi 81st out of 110 countries with data for 2018, putting it 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 Malawi, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 1 years | — |
| 1995 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1996 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1997 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1998 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1999 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2000 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2004 | 1 years | -85.7% |
| 2005 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 2006 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 2007 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 2008 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 2009 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2010 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2011 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 2012 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 2013 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2014 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 2015 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 2016 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 2017 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 2018 | 15 years | +7.1% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 15 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 9.5 years, 1.6× the median. (10 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 15 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 15 years, 1.0× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of democracy in Malawi 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | -85.7% | 7 years | 1 years |
| 1995 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 2005 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.5 years | 1 years | 6 years | 6 |
| 2000s | 4 years | 1 years | 7 years | 7 |
| 2010s | 11 years | 7 years | 15 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 80 Bangladesh 16 years compare
- 81 Georgia 15 years compare
- 81 Serbia 15 years compare
- 81 Solomon Islands 15 years compare
More social development data for Malawi
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 35,241 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 551 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate -33.33 % 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 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 551 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0016 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 Malawi?
- Age of democracy in Malawi was 15 years in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of democracy recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 15 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest age of democracy recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1994.
- How does Malawi rank for age of democracy?
- Malawi ranks 81st out of 110 countries with data for 2018.
- Is age of democracy rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 200.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malawi 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 — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a democracy.