Liberal Democracy Index in Cameroon
Cameroon: Liberal Democracy Index was 0.114 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Liberal Democracy Index in Cameroon, 1961–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, liberal democracy index in Cameroon stood at 0.114.
The figure is down 9.5% on the previous year and down 25.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, liberal democracy index in Cameroon peaked at 0.159 in 2012 and was at its lowest, 0.069, in 1971.
Cameroon ranks 134th of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Liberal Democracy Index in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.071 | — |
| 1962 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.07 | -1.4% |
| 1967 | 0.07 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.07 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.07 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.071 | +1.4% |
| 1971 | 0.069 | -2.8% |
| 1972 | 0.071 | +2.9% |
| 1973 | 0.07 | -1.4% |
| 1974 | 0.071 | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.07 | -1.4% |
| 1978 | 0.07 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.07 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.08 | +14.3% |
| 1981 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.09 | +12.5% |
| 1983 | 0.097 | +7.8% |
| 1984 | 0.101 | +4.1% |
| 1985 | 0.1 | -1.0% |
| 1986 | 0.1 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.1 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.101 | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 0.101 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.127 | +25.7% |
| 1991 | 0.137 | +7.9% |
| 1992 | 0.144 | +5.1% |
| 1993 | 0.148 | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 0.146 | -1.4% |
| 1995 | 0.146 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.144 | -1.4% |
| 1997 | 0.144 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.147 | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 0.147 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.157 | +6.8% |
| 2001 | 0.156 | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 0.156 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.157 | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 0.158 | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 0.155 | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 0.155 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.153 | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 0.153 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.154 | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 0.154 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 0.155 | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 0.159 | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 0.15 | -5.7% |
| 2014 | 0.152 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.139 | -8.6% |
| 2017 | 0.131 | -5.8% |
| 2018 | 0.12 | -8.4% |
| 2019 | 0.116 | -3.3% |
| 2020 | 0.123 | +6.0% |
| 2021 | 0.121 | -1.6% |
| 2022 | 0.138 | +14.0% |
| 2023 | 0.122 | -11.6% |
| 2024 | 0.126 | +3.3% |
| 2025 | 0.114 | -9.5% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 0.114 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.203, 56% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 0.114 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.17, 67% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Liberal Democracy Index in Cameroon 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | +25.7% | 0.101 | 0.127 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0706 | 0.07 | 0.071 | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.0704 | 0.069 | 0.071 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.095 | 0.08 | 0.101 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.143 | 0.127 | 0.148 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.1554 | 0.153 | 0.158 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.1428 | 0.116 | 0.159 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.124 | 0.114 | 0.138 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More social development data for Cameroon
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 408,613 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 140,366 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 6 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 6 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0047 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 140,366 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0137 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 liberal democracy index in Cameroon?
- Liberal democracy index in Cameroon was 0.114 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 0.159 in 2012.
- What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.069 in 1971.
- How does Cameroon rank for liberal democracy index?
- Cameroon ranks 134th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cameroon data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Liberal Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 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, individual and minority rights, equality before the law, and executive constraints.