Distribution of Democracy Index in Guyana
Guyana: Distribution of Democracy Index was 17 in 2018. ▲ Rising
Distribution of Democracy Index in Guyana, 1966–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Guyana recorded 17 for distribution of democracy index in 2018. That is the highest value across all 53 years on record.
That represents a change of up 6.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, distribution of democracy index in Guyana peaked at 17 in 2015 and was at its lowest, 3, in 1980.
That places Guyana 70th out of 168 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Distribution of Democracy Index in Guyana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | 12 | — |
| 1967 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 11 | -8.3% |
| 1969 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 11 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 10 | -9.1% |
| 1979 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 3 | -70.0% |
| 1981 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 16 | +433.3% |
| 1993 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 17 | +6.2% |
| 2016 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 17 | +0.0% |
Guyana compared with similar countries
- Guyana's 17 is below the median for high income countries, which is 20, 85% of the median. (50 countries reporting)
- Guyana's 17 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 18, 94% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 11.5 | 11 | 12 | 4 |
| 1970s | 10.8 | 10 | 11 | 10 |
| 1980s | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.4 | 3 | 16 | 10 |
| 2000s | 16 | 16 | 16 | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.44 | 16 | 17 | 9 |
Countries ranked near Guyana
- 70 Armenia 17 compare
- 70 Benin 17 compare
- 70 Bhutan 17 compare
- 70 Bolivia 17 compare
- 70 Colombia 17 compare
- 70 Dominican Republic 17 compare
- 70 Georgia 17 compare
- 70 Honduras 17 compare
- 70 Liberia 17 compare
- 70 Malaysia 17 compare
- 70 Nepal 17 compare
- 70 Nigeria 17 compare
- 70 Pakistan 17 compare
- 70 Senegal 17 compare
- 70 Sierra Leone 17 compare
- 70 Tunisia 17 compare
More social development data for Guyana
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 35 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 342 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 3 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 50 % 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 0.0004 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 342 (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 distribution of democracy index in Guyana?
- Distribution of democracy index in Guyana was 17 in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest distribution of democracy index recorded in Guyana?
- The highest recorded value was 17 in 2015.
- What is the lowest distribution of democracy index recorded in Guyana?
- The lowest recorded value was 3 in 1980.
- How does Guyana rank for distribution of democracy index?
- Guyana ranks 70th out of 168 countries with data for 2018.
- Is distribution of democracy index rising or falling in Guyana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Guyana data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Distribution of Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 53 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 0 to 20 (fully democratic).