Varieties of democracy in Zambia
Zambia: Varieties of democracy was 0.497 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.497
Change on year
down 2.9%
World rank
88th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.525
in 2023
All-time low
0.038
in 1912
Years of data
115
1911–2025
Varieties of democracy in Zambia, 1911–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for varieties of democracy in Zambia is 0.497, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.9% on the previous year and up 8.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, varieties of democracy in Zambia peaked at 0.525 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.038, in 1912.
Zambia ranks 88th 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 Zambia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1911 | 0.039 | — |
| 1912 | 0.038 | -2.6% |
| 1913 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.038 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.039 | +2.6% |
| 1924 | 0.041 | +5.1% |
| 1925 | 0.039 | -4.9% |
| 1926 | 0.064 | +64.1% |
| 1927 | 0.064 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.064 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.066 | +3.1% |
| 1930 | 0.068 | +3.0% |
| 1931 | 0.068 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.068 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.068 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.068 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.066 | -2.9% |
| 1936 | 0.066 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.066 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.064 | -3.0% |
| 1939 | 0.066 | +3.1% |
| 1940 | 0.067 | +1.5% |
| 1941 | 0.076 | +13.4% |
| 1942 | 0.074 | -2.6% |
| 1943 | 0.073 | -1.4% |
| 1944 | 0.069 | -5.5% |
| 1945 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 0.07 | +1.4% |
| 1947 | 0.074 | +5.7% |
| 1948 | 0.088 | +18.9% |
| 1949 | 0.097 | +10.2% |
| 1950 | 0.096 | -1.0% |
| 1951 | 0.101 | +5.2% |
| 1952 | 0.101 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.101 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.105 | +4.0% |
| 1955 | 0.105 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.105 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.105 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.107 | +1.9% |
| 1959 | 0.109 | +1.9% |
| 1960 | 0.115 | +5.5% |
| 1961 | 0.118 | +2.6% |
| 1962 | 0.125 | +5.9% |
| 1963 | 0.137 | +9.6% |
| 1964 | 0.227 | +65.7% |
| 1965 | 0.306 | +34.8% |
| 1966 | 0.307 | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 0.307 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.306 | -0.3% |
| 1969 | 0.286 | -6.5% |
| 1970 | 0.283 | -1.0% |
| 1971 | 0.258 | -8.8% |
| 1972 | 0.254 | -1.6% |
| 1973 | 0.209 | -17.7% |
| 1974 | 0.194 | -7.2% |
| 1975 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.193 | -0.5% |
| 1977 | 0.193 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.193 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.192 | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.192 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.193 | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 0.217 | +12.4% |
| 1991 | 0.287 | +32.3% |
| 1992 | 0.439 | +53.0% |
| 1993 | 0.447 | +1.8% |
| 1994 | 0.482 | +7.8% |
| 1995 | 0.482 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.49 | +1.7% |
| 1997 | 0.478 | -2.4% |
| 1998 | 0.478 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.478 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.486 | +1.7% |
| 2001 | 0.489 | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 0.484 | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 0.484 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.484 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.498 | +2.9% |
| 2006 | 0.498 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.5 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 0.51 | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 0.517 | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 0.514 | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 0.503 | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 0.503 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.485 | -3.6% |
| 2014 | 0.478 | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 0.458 | -4.2% |
| 2016 | 0.397 | -13.3% |
| 2017 | 0.36 | -9.3% |
| 2018 | 0.37 | +2.8% |
| 2019 | 0.358 | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 0.353 | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 0.421 | +19.3% |
| 2022 | 0.52 | +23.5% |
| 2023 | 0.525 | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 0.512 | -2.5% |
| 2025 | 0.497 | -2.9% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 0.497 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.3475, 1.4× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 0.497 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.317, 1.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Varieties of democracy in Zambia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | +65.7% | 0.137 | 0.227 |
| 1926 | +64.1% | 0.039 | 0.064 |
| 1992 | +53.0% | 0.287 | 0.439 |
| 1965 | +34.8% | 0.227 | 0.306 |
| 1991 | +32.3% | 0.217 | 0.287 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 0.0381 | 0.038 | 0.039 | 9 |
| 1920s | 0.0491 | 0.038 | 0.066 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.0668 | 0.064 | 0.068 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.0757 | 0.067 | 0.097 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.1035 | 0.096 | 0.109 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.2234 | 0.115 | 0.307 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.2163 | 0.192 | 0.283 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.1921 | 0.192 | 0.193 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.4278 | 0.217 | 0.49 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.495 | 0.484 | 0.517 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.4426 | 0.358 | 0.514 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4713 | 0.353 | 0.525 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More social development data for Zambia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 83,225 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 346 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 346 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0038 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 varieties of democracy in Zambia?
- Varieties of democracy in Zambia was 0.497 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest varieties of democracy recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 0.525 in 2023.
- What is the lowest varieties of democracy recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.038 in 1912.
- How does Zambia rank for varieties of democracy?
- Zambia ranks 88th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is varieties of democracy rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Zambia 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 115 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.