Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) was 20 years in 2022. ◆ Volatile
Age of electoral democracy in Sierra Leone, 2003–2022
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2022, age of electoral democracy in Sierra Leone stood at 20 years. That is the highest value across all 20 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.3% on the previous year and up 100.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Sierra Leone peaked at 20 years in 2022 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 2003.
That places Sierra Leone 75th out of 111 countries with data for 2022, 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 electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 1 years | — |
| 2004 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 2005 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 2006 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 2007 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 2008 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2009 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2010 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 2011 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 2012 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2013 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 2014 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 2015 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 2016 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 2017 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 2018 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 2019 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 2020 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 2021 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 2022 | 20 years | +5.3% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 20 years is above the median for low income countries, which is 6 years, 3.3× the median. (9 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 20 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 12 years, 1.7× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of electoral democracy (V-Dem) in Sierra Leone 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 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 2005 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 4 years | 1 years | 7 years | 7 |
| 2010s | 12.5 years | 8 years | 17 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 19 years | 18 years | 20 years | 3 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More social development data for Sierra Leone
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 8,925 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 8,925 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of electoral democracy in Sierra Leone?
- Age of electoral democracy in Sierra Leone was 20 years in 2022, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 20 years in 2022.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 2003.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Sierra Leone ranks 75th out of 111 countries with data for 2022.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 100.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of electoral democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.