Democracy Index in Mauritania
Mauritania: Democracy Index was -2 in 2018. ▲ Rising
Democracy Index in Mauritania, 1960–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Mauritania recorded -2 for democracy index in 2018.
The figure is up 60.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, democracy index in Mauritania peaked at 4 in 2007 and was at its lowest, -7, in 1962.
Mauritania ranks 128th of 168 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 59 years of available data.
Democracy Index in Mauritania, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | -4 | — |
| 1961 | -4 | -0.0% |
| 1962 | -7 | +75.0% |
| 1963 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1964 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1965 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1966 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1967 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1968 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1969 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1970 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1971 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1972 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1973 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1974 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1975 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1976 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1977 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1978 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1979 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1980 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1981 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1982 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1983 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1984 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1985 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1986 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1987 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1988 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1989 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1990 | -7 | -0.0% |
| 1991 | -6 | -14.3% |
| 1992 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2002 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -6 | -0.0% |
| 2005 | -5 | -16.7% |
| 2006 | -3 | -40.0% |
| 2007 | 4 | -233.3% |
| 2008 | -5 | -225.0% |
| 2009 | -2 | -60.0% |
| 2010 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2012 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2017 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2018 | -2 | -0.0% |
Mauritania compared with similar countries
- Mauritania's -2 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 5. (43 countries reporting)
- Mauritania's -2 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.5. (46 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | -6.4 | -7 | -4 | 10 |
| 1970s | -7 | -7 | -7 | 10 |
| 1980s | -7 | -7 | -7 | 10 |
| 1990s | -6.1 | -7 | -6 | 10 |
| 2000s | -4.1 | -6 | 4 | 10 |
| 2010s | -2 | -2 | -2 | 9 |
Countries ranked near Mauritania
More social development data for Mauritania
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 301,490 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 43,906 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 5 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0083 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 43,906 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0567 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 democracy index in Mauritania?
- Democracy index in Mauritania was -2 in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest democracy index recorded in Mauritania?
- The highest recorded value was 4 in 2007.
- What is the lowest democracy index recorded in Mauritania?
- The lowest recorded value was -7 in 1962.
- How does Mauritania rank for democracy index?
- Mauritania ranks 128th out of 168 countries with data for 2018.
- Is democracy index rising or falling in Mauritania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 60.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Mauritania data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 59 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
It combines information on the extent to which open, multi-party, and competitive elections choose a chief executive who faces comprehensive institutional constraints, and political participation is competitive. It ranges from -10 to 10 (fully democratic).