Liberal democracy in Ghana
Ghana: Liberal democracy was 2 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
2
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
32nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
3
in 2003
All-time low
0
in 1902
Years of data
124
1902–2025
Liberal democracy in Ghana, 1902–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for liberal democracy in Ghana is 2, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, liberal democracy in Ghana peaked at 3 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1902.
That places Ghana 32nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Liberal democracy in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1902 | 0 | — |
| 1903 | 0 | — |
| 1904 | 0 | — |
| 1905 | 0 | — |
| 1906 | 0 | — |
| 1907 | 0 | — |
| 1908 | 0 | — |
| 1909 | 0 | — |
| 1910 | 0 | — |
| 1911 | 0 | — |
| 1912 | 0 | — |
| 1913 | 0 | — |
| 1914 | 0 | — |
| 1915 | 0 | — |
| 1916 | 0 | — |
| 1917 | 0 | — |
| 1918 | 0 | — |
| 1919 | 0 | — |
| 1920 | 0 | — |
| 1921 | 0 | — |
| 1922 | 0 | — |
| 1923 | 0 | — |
| 1924 | 0 | — |
| 1925 | 0 | — |
| 1926 | 0 | — |
| 1927 | 0 | — |
| 1928 | 0 | — |
| 1929 | 0 | — |
| 1930 | 0 | — |
| 1931 | 0 | — |
| 1932 | 0 | — |
| 1933 | 0 | — |
| 1934 | 0 | — |
| 1935 | 0 | — |
| 1936 | 0 | — |
| 1937 | 0 | — |
| 1938 | 0 | — |
| 1939 | 0 | — |
| 1940 | 0 | — |
| 1941 | 0 | — |
| 1942 | 0 | — |
| 1943 | 0 | — |
| 1944 | 0 | — |
| 1945 | 0 | — |
| 1946 | 0 | — |
| 1947 | 0 | — |
| 1948 | 0 | — |
| 1949 | 0 | — |
| 1950 | 0 | — |
| 1951 | 0 | — |
| 1952 | 0 | — |
| 1953 | 0 | — |
| 1954 | 0 | — |
| 1955 | 0 | — |
| 1956 | 0 | — |
| 1957 | 1 | — |
| 1958 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1967 | 0 | — |
| 1968 | 0 | — |
| 1969 | 1 | — |
| 1970 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1973 | 0 | — |
| 1974 | 0 | — |
| 1975 | 0 | — |
| 1976 | 0 | — |
| 1977 | 0 | — |
| 1978 | 0 | — |
| 1979 | 1 | — |
| 1980 | 2 | +100.0% |
| 1981 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1982 | 0 | — |
| 1983 | 0 | — |
| 1984 | 0 | — |
| 1985 | 0 | — |
| 1986 | 0 | — |
| 1987 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | 0 | — |
| 1989 | 0 | — |
| 1990 | 0 | — |
| 1991 | 0 | — |
| 1992 | 0 | — |
| 1993 | 1 | — |
| 1994 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 2 | +100.0% |
| 1997 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3 | +50.0% |
| 2004 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 2 | -33.3% |
| 2016 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 2 | +0.0% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 2 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1, 2.0× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 2 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1, 2.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 1910s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.3 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.7 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.3 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.2 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.1 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.7 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.5 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 32 Argentina 2 compare
- 32 Armenia 2 compare
- 32 Bhutan 2 compare
- 32 Bolivia 2 compare
- 32 Botswana 2 compare
- 32 Brazil 2 compare
- 32 Bulgaria 2 compare
- 32 Canada 2 compare
- 32 Cape Verde 2 compare
- 32 Colombia 2 compare
- 32 Croatia 2 compare
- 32 Dominican Republic 2 compare
- 32 East Timor 2 compare
- 32 Ecuador 2 compare
- 32 Fiji 2 compare
- 32 Gambia 2 compare
- 32 Greece 2 compare
- 32 Guatemala 2 compare
- 32 Guyana 2 compare
- 32 Honduras 2 compare
- 32 Israel 2 compare
- 32 Jamaica 2 compare
- 32 Kenya 2 compare
- 32 Lesotho 2 compare
- 32 Liberia 2 compare
- 32 Malawi 2 compare
- 32 Malaysia 2 compare
- 32 Maldives 2 compare
- 32 Malta 2 compare
- 32 Mauritius 2 compare
- 32 Moldova 2 compare
- 32 Mongolia 2 compare
- 32 Montenegro 2 compare
- 32 Namibia 2 compare
- 32 Nepal 2 compare
- 32 Nigeria 2 compare
- 32 North Macedonia 2 compare
- 32 Panama 2 compare
- 32 Paraguay 2 compare
- 32 Peru 2 compare
- 32 Poland 2 compare
- 32 Portugal 2 compare
- 32 Romania 2 compare
- 32 Sao Tome and Principe 2 compare
- 32 Senegal 2 compare
- 32 Slovakia 2 compare
- 32 Slovenia 2 compare
- 32 Solomon Islands 2 compare
- 32 South Africa 2 compare
- 32 Sri Lanka 2 compare
- 32 Suriname 2 compare
- 32 United Kingdom 2 compare
- 32 United States 2 compare
- 32 Vanuatu 2 compare
More social development data for Ghana
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 21,050 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0006 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 in Ghana?
- Liberal democracy in Ghana was 2 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest liberal democracy recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 3 in 2003.
- What is the lowest liberal democracy recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1902.
- How does Ghana rank for liberal democracy?
- Ghana ranks 32nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is liberal democracy rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 124 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Identifies the political regime of a country by distinguishing between closed autocracies, electoral autocracies, electoral democracies, and liberal democracies.