Age of full democracy in Benin
Benin: Age of full democracy was 23 years in 2017. ◆ Volatile
Age of full democracy in Benin, 1995–2017
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2017, age of full democracy in Benin stood at 23 years. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
The figure is up 4.5% on the previous year and up 76.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of full democracy in Benin peaked at 23 years in 2017 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1995.
Benin ranks 72nd of 89 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of full democracy in Benin, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 1 years | — |
| 1996 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1997 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1998 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1999 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 2000 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2001 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2002 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 2003 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 2004 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2005 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 2006 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 2007 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 2008 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 2009 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 2010 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 2011 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 2012 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 2013 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 2014 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 2015 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 2016 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 2017 | 23 years | +4.5% |
Benin compared with similar countries
- Benin's 23 years is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 27 years, 85% of the median. (12 countries reporting)
- Benin's 23 years is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 24 years, 96% of the median. (10 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of full democracy in Benin 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1997 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3 years | 1 years | 5 years | 5 |
| 2000s | 10.5 years | 6 years | 15 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.5 years | 16 years | 23 years | 8 |
Countries ranked near Benin
More social development data for Benin
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,974 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,279 (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 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,279 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0011 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 full democracy in Benin?
- Age of full democracy in Benin was 23 years in 2017, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of full democracy recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 23 years in 2017.
- What is the lowest age of full democracy recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1995.
- How does Benin rank for age of full democracy?
- Benin ranks 72nd out of 89 countries with data for 2017.
- Is age of full democracy rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is up 76.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Benin data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of full democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a full democracy.