Participatory Democracy Index in Cameroon
Cameroon: Participatory Democracy Index was 0.093 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Participatory Democracy Index in Cameroon, 1961–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for participatory democracy index in Cameroon is 0.093, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 13.9% on the previous year and down 45.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, participatory democracy index in Cameroon peaked at 0.169 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 0.087, in 1966.
That places Cameroon 148th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Participatory Democracy Index in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.088 | — |
| 1962 | 0.088 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.088 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.088 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.088 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.087 | -1.1% |
| 1967 | 0.087 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.087 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.087 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.087 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 0.087 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.103 | +18.4% |
| 1973 | 0.104 | +1.0% |
| 1974 | 0.104 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.104 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.104 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.103 | -1.0% |
| 1978 | 0.101 | -1.9% |
| 1979 | 0.1 | -1.0% |
| 1980 | 0.1 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.099 | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 0.101 | +2.0% |
| 1983 | 0.102 | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 0.112 | +9.8% |
| 1985 | 0.111 | -0.9% |
| 1986 | 0.11 | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 0.109 | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 0.108 | -0.9% |
| 1989 | 0.107 | -0.9% |
| 1990 | 0.147 | +37.4% |
| 1991 | 0.152 | +3.4% |
| 1992 | 0.147 | -3.3% |
| 1993 | 0.147 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.147 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.146 | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 0.146 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.147 | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 0.148 | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.153 | +3.4% |
| 2001 | 0.153 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.154 | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 0.155 | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 0.156 | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 0.157 | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 0.157 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.157 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.157 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.159 | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 0.162 | +1.9% |
| 2011 | 0.166 | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 0.166 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.166 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 0.169 | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 0.169 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.122 | -27.8% |
| 2017 | 0.109 | -10.7% |
| 2018 | 0.111 | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 0.106 | -4.5% |
| 2020 | 0.109 | +2.8% |
| 2021 | 0.109 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.123 | +12.8% |
| 2023 | 0.111 | -9.8% |
| 2024 | 0.108 | -2.7% |
| 2025 | 0.093 | -13.9% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 0.093 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.2215, 42% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 0.093 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.2095, 44% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Participatory 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 | +37.4% | 0.107 | 0.147 |
| 2016 | -27.8% | 0.169 | 0.122 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.0876 | 0.087 | 0.088 | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.0997 | 0.087 | 0.104 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.1059 | 0.099 | 0.112 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.1475 | 0.146 | 0.152 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.1558 | 0.153 | 0.159 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.1446 | 0.106 | 0.169 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.1088 | 0.093 | 0.123 | 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 participatory democracy index in Cameroon?
- Participatory democracy index in Cameroon was 0.093 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest participatory democracy index recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 0.169 in 2014.
- What is the lowest participatory democracy index recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.087 in 1966.
- How does Cameroon rank for participatory democracy index?
- Cameroon ranks 148th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is participatory democracy index rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 45.0%. 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 Participatory 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, as well as the extent to which citizens can engage in regional and local government, civil society organizations, and direct democracy.