LGBT+ Rights Index in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: LGBT+ Rights Index was 0.0333 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
LGBT+ Rights Index in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1991–2025
Source: Velasco (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, lgbt+ rights index in Democratic Republic of Congo stood at 0.0333. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 83.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lgbt+ rights index in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 0.5125 in 1991 and was at its lowest, 0.0333, in 2017.
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 125th of 194 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.
LGBT+ Rights Index in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 0.5125 | — |
| 1992 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.2625 | -48.8% |
| 1994 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.5125 | +95.2% |
| 1998 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.5125 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.2625 | -48.8% |
| 2004 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.2625 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 0.2 | -23.8% |
| 2015 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 0.0333 | -83.4% |
| 2018 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 0.0333 | +0.0% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 0.0333 is above the median for low income countries, which is -1.52. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 0.0333 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -0.6687. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.4014 | 0.2625 | 0.5125 | 9 |
| 2000s | 0.3375 | 0.2625 | 0.5125 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.175 | 0.0333 | 0.2625 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.0333 | 0.0333 | 0.0333 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
- 122 Kiribati 0.2542 compare
- 123 Cote d'Ivoire 0.25 compare
- 124 Chad 0.1792 compare
- 126 Sri Lanka -0.1 compare
- 127 Kyrgyzstan -0.1458 compare
- 128 Congo -0.3625 compare
- 128 North Korea -0.3625 compare
More social development data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 503,732 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1.18 million (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0104 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1.18 million (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0045 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 lgbt+ rights index in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Lgbt+ rights index in Democratic Republic of Congo was 0.0333 in 2025, according to Velasco (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest lgbt+ rights index recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 0.5125 in 1991.
- What is the lowest lgbt+ rights index recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0333 in 2017.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for lgbt+ rights index?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 125th out of 194 countries with data for 2025.
- Is lgbt+ rights index rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is down 83.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from Velasco (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of LGBT+ Rights Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Summary measure of a country's LGBTI-related laws, calculated by subtracting the sum of its regressive policy scores from the sum of its progressive policy scores.