Deliberative Democracy Index in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Deliberative Democracy Index was 0.621 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Deliberative Democracy Index in Sri Lanka, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, deliberative democracy index in Sri Lanka stood at 0.621. That is the highest value across all 126 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 37.7% on the previous year and up 52.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, deliberative democracy index in Sri Lanka peaked at 0.621 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.156, in 1900.
That places Sri Lanka 39th out of 175 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Deliberative Democracy Index in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.156 | — |
| 1901 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.185 | +18.6% |
| 1912 | 0.194 | +4.9% |
| 1913 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.199 | +2.6% |
| 1921 | 0.2 | +0.5% |
| 1922 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.201 | +0.5% |
| 1924 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.201 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.208 | +3.5% |
| 1931 | 0.23 | +10.6% |
| 1932 | 0.255 | +10.9% |
| 1933 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.258 | +1.2% |
| 1937 | 0.259 | +0.4% |
| 1938 | 0.259 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.259 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.253 | -2.3% |
| 1941 | 0.253 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.253 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.253 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.253 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.253 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 0.257 | +1.6% |
| 1947 | 0.303 | +17.9% |
| 1948 | 0.464 | +53.1% |
| 1949 | 0.442 | -4.7% |
| 1950 | 0.451 | +2.0% |
| 1951 | 0.451 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.432 | -4.2% |
| 1953 | 0.42 | -2.8% |
| 1954 | 0.421 | +0.2% |
| 1955 | 0.423 | +0.5% |
| 1956 | 0.418 | -1.2% |
| 1957 | 0.419 | +0.2% |
| 1958 | 0.419 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.419 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.439 | +4.8% |
| 1961 | 0.441 | +0.5% |
| 1962 | 0.441 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.441 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.441 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.439 | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 0.438 | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 0.438 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.438 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.438 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.388 | -11.4% |
| 1971 | 0.368 | -5.2% |
| 1972 | 0.359 | -2.4% |
| 1973 | 0.336 | -6.4% |
| 1974 | 0.335 | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 0.336 | +0.3% |
| 1976 | 0.336 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.323 | -3.9% |
| 1978 | 0.321 | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 0.314 | -2.2% |
| 1980 | 0.302 | -3.8% |
| 1981 | 0.302 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.29 | -4.0% |
| 1983 | 0.275 | -5.2% |
| 1984 | 0.275 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.275 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.274 | -0.4% |
| 1987 | 0.271 | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 0.266 | -1.8% |
| 1989 | 0.254 | -4.5% |
| 1990 | 0.258 | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 0.259 | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 0.261 | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 0.276 | +5.7% |
| 1995 | 0.304 | +10.1% |
| 1996 | 0.304 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.304 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.294 | -3.3% |
| 1999 | 0.294 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.277 | -5.8% |
| 2001 | 0.277 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.296 | +6.9% |
| 2003 | 0.296 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.267 | -9.8% |
| 2005 | 0.23 | -13.9% |
| 2006 | 0.191 | -17.0% |
| 2007 | 0.185 | -3.1% |
| 2008 | 0.185 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.184 | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 0.215 | +16.8% |
| 2011 | 0.204 | -5.1% |
| 2012 | 0.205 | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 0.217 | +5.9% |
| 2014 | 0.216 | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 0.408 | +88.9% |
| 2016 | 0.454 | +11.3% |
| 2017 | 0.464 | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 0.431 | -7.1% |
| 2019 | 0.384 | -10.9% |
| 2020 | 0.334 | -13.0% |
| 2021 | 0.324 | -3.0% |
| 2022 | 0.356 | +9.9% |
| 2023 | 0.381 | +7.0% |
| 2024 | 0.451 | +18.4% |
| 2025 | 0.621 | +37.7% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 0.621 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3275, 1.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 0.621 is above the median for South Asia, which is 0.411, 1.5× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Deliberative Democracy Index in Sri Lanka 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | +88.9% | 0.216 | 0.408 |
| 1948 | +53.1% | 0.303 | 0.464 |
| 2025 | +37.7% | 0.451 | 0.621 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.156 | 0.156 | 0.156 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.1893 | 0.156 | 0.194 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.2006 | 0.199 | 0.201 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.2493 | 0.208 | 0.259 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.2984 | 0.253 | 0.464 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.4273 | 0.418 | 0.451 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.4394 | 0.438 | 0.441 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.3416 | 0.314 | 0.388 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.2784 | 0.254 | 0.302 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.2812 | 0.258 | 0.304 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2388 | 0.184 | 0.296 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.3198 | 0.204 | 0.464 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4112 | 0.324 | 0.621 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More social development data for Sri Lanka
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 213 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 148,369 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 3 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 3 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0068 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 148,369 (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 deliberative democracy index in Sri Lanka?
- Deliberative democracy index in Sri Lanka was 0.621 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest deliberative democracy index recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 0.621 in 2025.
- What is the lowest deliberative democracy index recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.156 in 1900.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for deliberative democracy index?
- Sri Lanka ranks 39th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is deliberative democracy index rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 52.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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.