Age of liberal democracy in South Africa
South Africa: Age of liberal democracy was 17 years in 2012. ◆ Volatile
Age of liberal democracy in South Africa, 1996–2012
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 17 years for age of liberal democracy in 2012. That is the highest value across all 17 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 6.2% on the previous year and up 142.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of liberal democracy in South Africa peaked at 17 years in 2012 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1996.
South Africa ranks 33rd of 47 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 liberal democracy in South Africa, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1 years | — |
| 1997 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1998 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1999 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 2000 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 2001 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 2002 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 2003 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 2004 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 2005 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2006 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 2007 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 2008 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 2010 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 2011 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 2012 | 17 years | +6.2% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 17 years is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 17 years, 1.0× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of liberal democracy in South Africa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.5 years | 1 years | 4 years | 4 |
| 2000s | 9.5 years | 5 years | 14 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 16 years | 15 years | 17 years | 3 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More social development data for South Africa
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 55,177 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,319 (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 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,319 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of liberal democracy in South Africa?
- Age of liberal democracy in South Africa was 17 years in 2012, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of liberal democracy recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 17 years in 2012.
- What is the lowest age of liberal democracy recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1996.
- How does South Africa rank for age of liberal democracy?
- South Africa ranks 33rd out of 47 countries with data for 2012.
- Is age of liberal democracy rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 142.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.