Deliberative Democracy Index in Belgium
Belgium: Deliberative Democracy Index was 0.775 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
0.775
Change on year
down 2.3%
World rank
11th
of 175 countries
All-time high
0.821
in 2020
All-time low
0.073
in 1941
Years of data
126
1900–2025
Deliberative Democracy Index in Belgium, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, deliberative democracy index in Belgium stood at 0.775.
The figure is down 2.3% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, deliberative democracy index in Belgium peaked at 0.821 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.073, in 1941.
Belgium ranks 11th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Deliberative Democracy Index in Belgium, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.333 | — |
| 1901 | 0.335 | +0.6% |
| 1902 | 0.336 | +0.3% |
| 1903 | 0.336 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.334 | -0.6% |
| 1905 | 0.332 | -0.6% |
| 1906 | 0.335 | +0.9% |
| 1907 | 0.336 | +0.3% |
| 1908 | 0.336 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.336 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.336 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.337 | +0.3% |
| 1912 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.335 | -0.6% |
| 1914 | 0.168 | -49.9% |
| 1915 | 0.125 | -25.6% |
| 1916 | 0.125 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.125 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.163 | +30.4% |
| 1919 | 0.235 | +44.2% |
| 1920 | 0.291 | +23.8% |
| 1921 | 0.368 | +26.5% |
| 1922 | 0.372 | +1.1% |
| 1923 | 0.372 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.372 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.372 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.371 | -0.3% |
| 1927 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.37 | -0.3% |
| 1930 | 0.369 | -0.3% |
| 1931 | 0.369 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.369 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.367 | -0.5% |
| 1934 | 0.367 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.367 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.368 | +0.3% |
| 1937 | 0.371 | +0.8% |
| 1938 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.37 | -0.3% |
| 1940 | 0.166 | -55.1% |
| 1941 | 0.073 | -56.0% |
| 1942 | 0.073 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.073 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.087 | +19.2% |
| 1945 | 0.301 | +246.0% |
| 1946 | 0.465 | +54.5% |
| 1947 | 0.485 | +4.3% |
| 1948 | 0.485 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.622 | +28.2% |
| 1950 | 0.641 | +3.1% |
| 1951 | 0.644 | +0.5% |
| 1952 | 0.644 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.644 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.651 | +1.1% |
| 1955 | 0.654 | +0.5% |
| 1956 | 0.654 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.654 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.653 | -0.2% |
| 1959 | 0.652 | -0.2% |
| 1960 | 0.753 | +15.5% |
| 1961 | 0.747 | -0.8% |
| 1962 | 0.754 | +0.9% |
| 1963 | 0.754 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.754 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.755 | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 0.752 | -0.4% |
| 1967 | 0.752 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.75 | -0.3% |
| 1969 | 0.75 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.754 | +0.5% |
| 1971 | 0.755 | +0.1% |
| 1972 | 0.762 | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 0.762 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.756 | -0.8% |
| 1975 | 0.755 | -0.1% |
| 1976 | 0.758 | +0.4% |
| 1977 | 0.761 | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 0.762 | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 0.761 | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 0.773 | +1.6% |
| 1981 | 0.765 | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 0.767 | +0.3% |
| 1983 | 0.767 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.767 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.768 | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 0.77 | +0.3% |
| 1987 | 0.766 | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 0.759 | -0.9% |
| 1989 | 0.764 | +0.7% |
| 1990 | 0.777 | +1.7% |
| 1991 | 0.778 | +0.1% |
| 1992 | 0.788 | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 0.788 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.789 | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 0.793 | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 0.796 | +0.4% |
| 1997 | 0.796 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.796 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.794 | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 0.798 | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 0.798 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.798 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.798 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.774 | -3.0% |
| 2005 | 0.795 | +2.7% |
| 2006 | 0.795 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.804 | +1.1% |
| 2008 | 0.81 | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 0.811 | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 0.813 | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 0.813 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.815 | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 0.82 | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 0.81 | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 0.811 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 0.811 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 0.807 | -0.5% |
| 2018 | 0.807 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.81 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 0.821 | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 0.819 | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 0.809 | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 0.809 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 0.793 | -2.0% |
| 2025 | 0.775 | -2.3% |
Belgium compared with similar countries
- Belgium's 0.775 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.665, 1.2× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Belgium's 0.775 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.61, 1.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Deliberative Democracy Index in Belgium 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | +246.0% | 0.087 | 0.301 |
| 1941 | -56.0% | 0.166 | 0.073 |
| 1940 | -55.1% | 0.37 | 0.166 |
| 1946 | +54.5% | 0.301 | 0.465 |
| 1914 | -49.9% | 0.335 | 0.168 |
| 1919 | +44.2% | 0.163 | 0.235 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.3349 | 0.332 | 0.336 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.2286 | 0.125 | 0.337 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.363 | 0.291 | 0.372 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.3688 | 0.367 | 0.371 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.283 | 0.073 | 0.622 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.6491 | 0.641 | 0.654 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.7521 | 0.747 | 0.755 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.7586 | 0.754 | 0.762 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.7666 | 0.759 | 0.773 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.7895 | 0.777 | 0.796 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7981 | 0.774 | 0.811 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8117 | 0.807 | 0.82 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8043 | 0.775 | 0.821 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
More social development data for Belgium
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 186,393 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 113 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (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 113 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0156 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 deliberative democracy index in Belgium?
- Deliberative democracy index in Belgium was 0.775 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest deliberative democracy index recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 0.821 in 2020.
- What is the lowest deliberative democracy index recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.073 in 1941.
- How does Belgium rank for deliberative democracy index?
- Belgium ranks 11th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is deliberative democracy index rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Deliberative Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, as well as the extent to which political elites justify their positions, justify them with the common good, acknowledge counterarguments, consult elites in policy changes, and society deliberates policy changes.