Political Rights Rating in Burundi
Burundi: Political Rights Rating was 7 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
7
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 199 countries
All-time high
7
in 1972
All-time low
3
in 2005
Years of data
53
1972–2025
Political Rights Rating in Burundi, 1972–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, political rights rating in Burundi stood at 7. That is the highest value across all 53 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights rating in Burundi peaked at 7 in 1972 and was at its lowest, 3, in 2005.
Burundi ranks 1st of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Political Rights Rating in Burundi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 7 | — |
| 1973 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 1984 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1985 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 1993 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1994 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 1995 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1997 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 2000 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2004 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3 | -40.0% |
| 2006 | 4 | +33.3% |
| 2007 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 5 | +25.0% |
| 2011 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 2015 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 2016 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 7 | +0.0% |
Burundi compared with similar countries
- Burundi's 7 is above the median for low income countries, which is 7, 1.0× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Burundi's 7 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 6, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| 1980s | 6.89 | 6 | 7 | 9 |
| 1990s | 6.6 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.7 | 3 | 6 | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.1 | 5 | 7 | 10 |
| 2020s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Burundi
- 1 Afghanistan 7 compare
- 1 Azerbaijan 7 compare
- 1 Bahrain 7 compare
- 1 Belarus 7 compare
- 1 Burkina Faso 7 compare
- 1 Cambodia 7 compare
- 1 Central African Republic 7 compare
- 1 Chad 7 compare
- 1 China 7 compare
- 1 Congo 7 compare
- 1 Cuba 7 compare
- 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 7 compare
- 1 Djibouti 7 compare
- 1 Equatorial Guinea 7 compare
- 1 Eritrea 7 compare
- 1 Eswatini 7 compare
- 1 Gabon 7 compare
- 1 Haiti 7 compare
- 1 Iran 7 compare
- 1 Kazakhstan 7 compare
- 1 Kyrgyzstan 7 compare
- 1 Laos 7 compare
- 1 Libya 7 compare
- 1 Mali 7 compare
- 1 Myanmar 7 compare
- 1 Nicaragua 7 compare
- 1 Niger 7 compare
- 1 North Korea 7 compare
- 1 Russia 7 compare
- 1 Saudi Arabia 7 compare
- 1 Somalia 7 compare
- 1 South Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Syria 7 compare
- 1 Tajikistan 7 compare
- 1 Turkmenistan 7 compare
- 1 United Arab Emirates 7 compare
- 1 Uzbekistan 7 compare
- 1 Venezuela 7 compare
- 1 Vietnam 7 compare
- 1 Western Sahara 7 compare
- 1 Yemen 7 compare
More social development data for Burundi
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 110,800 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 318,291 (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 0.0221 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 318,291 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0077 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 24.39 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights rating in Burundi?
- Political rights rating in Burundi was 7 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights rating recorded in Burundi?
- The highest recorded value was 7 in 1972.
- What is the lowest political rights rating recorded in Burundi?
- The lowest recorded value was 3 in 2005.
- How does Burundi rank for political rights rating?
- Burundi ranks 1st out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights rating rising or falling in Burundi?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Burundi data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Rights Rating. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Identifies the extent of free and fair elections, political pluralism and participation, and a functioning government. Lower ratings indicate more rights.