What is varieties of democracy in Ghana?

Varieties of democracy in Ghana was 0.711 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest varieties of democracy recorded in Ghana?

The highest recorded value was 0.771 in 2012.

What is the lowest varieties of democracy recorded in Ghana?

The lowest recorded value was 0.074 in 1902.

How does Ghana rank for varieties of democracy?

Ghana ranks 51st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is varieties of democracy rising or falling in Ghana?

Over the last ten years it is down 3.8%. 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 Varieties of democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Varieties of democracy in Ghana

Name: Varieties of democracy in Ghana
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Ghana: Varieties of democracy was 0.711 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)

0.711

Change on year

up 6.9%

World rank

51st

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.771

in 2012

All-time low

0.074

in 1902

Years of data

124

1902–2025

Varieties of democracy in Ghana, 1902–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for varieties of democracy in Ghana is 0.711, measured in 2025.

That represents a change of up 6.9% on the previous year and down 3.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, varieties of democracy in Ghana peaked at 0.771 in 2012 and was at its lowest, 0.074, in 1902.

Ghana ranks 51st of 176 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.

Varieties of democracy in Ghana, year by year

Annual values for Varieties of democracy in Ghana, 1902 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1902	0.074	—
1903	0.074	+0.0%
1904	0.074	+0.0%
1905	0.074	+0.0%
1906	0.074	+0.0%
1907	0.074	+0.0%
1908	0.074	+0.0%
1909	0.074	+0.0%
1910	0.074	+0.0%
1911	0.074	+0.0%
1912	0.074	+0.0%
1913	0.074	+0.0%
1914	0.074	+0.0%
1915	0.074	+0.0%
1916	0.074	+0.0%
1917	0.074	+0.0%
1918	0.074	+0.0%
1919	0.074	+0.0%
1920	0.074	+0.0%
1921	0.074	+0.0%
1922	0.074	+0.0%
1923	0.074	+0.0%
1924	0.074	+0.0%
1925	0.074	+0.0%
1926	0.076	+2.7%
1927	0.076	+0.0%
1928	0.076	+0.0%
1929	0.076	+0.0%
1930	0.076	+0.0%
1931	0.076	+0.0%
1932	0.076	+0.0%
1933	0.076	+0.0%
1934	0.076	+0.0%
1935	0.076	+0.0%
1936	0.076	+0.0%
1937	0.076	+0.0%
1938	0.078	+2.6%
1939	0.078	+0.0%
1940	0.078	+0.0%
1941	0.078	+0.0%
1942	0.078	+0.0%
1943	0.078	+0.0%
1944	0.078	+0.0%
1945	0.083	+6.4%
1946	0.095	+14.5%
1947	0.104	+9.5%
1948	0.104	+0.0%
1949	0.107	+2.9%
1950	0.106	-0.9%
1951	0.28	+164.2%
1952	0.289	+3.2%
1953	0.291	+0.7%
1954	0.291	+0.0%
1955	0.287	-1.4%
1956	0.288	+0.3%
1957	0.438	+52.1%
1958	0.397	-9.4%
1959	0.388	-2.3%
1960	0.349	-10.1%
1961	0.314	-10.0%
1962	0.296	-5.7%
1963	0.294	-0.7%
1964	0.288	-2.0%
1965	0.261	-9.4%
1966	0.149	-42.9%
1967	0.141	-5.4%
1968	0.142	+0.7%
1969	0.249	+75.4%
1970	0.382	+53.4%
1971	0.431	+12.8%
1972	0.147	-65.9%
1973	0.112	-23.8%
1974	0.113	+0.9%
1975	0.111	-1.8%
1976	0.111	+0.0%
1977	0.111	+0.0%
1978	0.114	+2.7%
1979	0.304	+166.7%
1980	0.539	+77.3%
1981	0.252	-53.2%
1982	0.109	-56.7%
1983	0.1	-8.3%
1984	0.098	-2.0%
1985	0.099	+1.0%
1986	0.099	+0.0%
1987	0.1	+1.0%
1988	0.1	+0.0%
1989	0.1	+0.0%
1990	0.104	+4.0%
1991	0.105	+1.0%
1992	0.173	+64.8%
1993	0.445	+157.2%
1994	0.479	+7.6%
1995	0.491	+2.5%
1996	0.513	+4.5%
1997	0.597	+16.4%
1998	0.597	+0.0%
1999	0.597	+0.0%
2000	0.664	+11.2%
2001	0.721	+8.6%
2002	0.731	+1.4%
2003	0.731	+0.0%
2004	0.734	+0.4%
2005	0.73	-0.5%
2006	0.73	+0.0%
2007	0.736	+0.8%
2008	0.732	-0.5%
2009	0.755	+3.1%
2010	0.761	+0.8%
2011	0.761	+0.0%
2012	0.771	+1.3%
2013	0.75	-2.7%
2014	0.746	-0.5%
2015	0.739	-0.9%
2016	0.725	-1.9%
2017	0.739	+1.9%
2018	0.735	-0.5%
2019	0.718	-2.3%
2020	0.718	+0.0%
2021	0.659	-8.2%
2022	0.663	+0.6%
2023	0.657	-0.9%
2024	0.665	+1.2%
2025	0.711	+6.9%

Ghana compared with similar countries

Ghana's 0.711 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.3475, 2.0× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Ghana's 0.711 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.317, 2.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Varieties of democracy in Ghana 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
1979	+166.7%	0.114	0.304
1951	+164.2%	0.106	0.28
1993	+157.2%	0.173	0.445
1980	+77.3%	0.304	0.539
1969	+75.4%	0.142	0.249
1972	-65.9%	0.431	0.147

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1900s	0.074	0.074	0.074	8
1910s	0.074	0.074	0.074	10
1920s	0.0748	0.074	0.076	10
1930s	0.0764	0.076	0.078	10
1940s	0.0883	0.078	0.107	10
1950s	0.3055	0.106	0.438	10
1960s	0.2483	0.141	0.349	10
1970s	0.1936	0.111	0.431	10
1980s	0.1596	0.098	0.539	10
1990s	0.4101	0.104	0.597	10
2000s	0.7264	0.664	0.755	10
2010s	0.7445	0.718	0.771	10
2020s	0.6788	0.657	0.718	6

Countries ranked near Ghana

48 Slovakia 0.733 compare
49 Vanuatu 0.729 compare
50 Panama 0.728 compare
52 Solomon Islands 0.696 compare
53 Israel 0.694 compare
54 Slovenia 0.692 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

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)

All data for Ghana →

Frequently asked questions

What is varieties of democracy in Ghana?: Varieties of democracy in Ghana was 0.711 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest varieties of democracy recorded in Ghana?: The highest recorded value was 0.771 in 2012.
What is the lowest varieties of democracy recorded in Ghana?: The lowest recorded value was 0.074 in 1902.
How does Ghana rank for varieties of democracy?: Ghana ranks 51st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is varieties of democracy rising or falling in Ghana?: Over the last ten years it is down 3.8%. 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 Varieties of democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Varieties of democracy in Ghana. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/varieties-democracy-vdem/ghana/

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About this data

Indicator: Varieties of democracy
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,649 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which political leaders are elected under comprehensive suffrage in free and fair elections, and freedoms of association and expression are guaranteed.