Varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Varieties of democracy was 0.268 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
0.268
Change on year
down 1.5%
World rank
122nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.33
in 1981
All-time low
0.056
in 1978
Years of data
126
1900–2025
Varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe is 0.268, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 1.5% on the previous year and down 11.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe peaked at 0.33 in 1981 and was at its lowest, 0.056, in 1978.
That places Zimbabwe 122nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.184 | — |
| 1901 | 0.184 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.183 | -0.5% |
| 1903 | 0.182 | -0.5% |
| 1904 | 0.182 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.183 | +0.5% |
| 1906 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.184 | +0.5% |
| 1912 | 0.185 | +0.5% |
| 1913 | 0.185 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.184 | -0.5% |
| 1915 | 0.183 | -0.5% |
| 1916 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.193 | +5.5% |
| 1920 | 0.183 | -5.2% |
| 1921 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.183 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.216 | +18.0% |
| 1924 | 0.268 | +24.1% |
| 1925 | 0.27 | +0.7% |
| 1926 | 0.27 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.27 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.269 | -0.4% |
| 1929 | 0.268 | -0.4% |
| 1930 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.269 | +0.4% |
| 1935 | 0.268 | -0.4% |
| 1936 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.268 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.259 | -3.4% |
| 1946 | 0.259 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 0.259 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.259 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.258 | -0.4% |
| 1950 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.256 | -0.8% |
| 1954 | 0.255 | -0.4% |
| 1955 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.254 | -0.4% |
| 1957 | 0.245 | -3.5% |
| 1958 | 0.239 | -2.4% |
| 1959 | 0.228 | -4.6% |
| 1960 | 0.233 | +2.2% |
| 1961 | 0.233 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.233 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.228 | -2.1% |
| 1964 | 0.213 | -6.6% |
| 1965 | 0.204 | -4.2% |
| 1966 | 0.197 | -3.4% |
| 1967 | 0.197 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.197 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.197 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.197 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 0.193 | -2.0% |
| 1972 | 0.193 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.193 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.194 | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.193 | -0.5% |
| 1978 | 0.056 | -71.0% |
| 1979 | 0.165 | +194.6% |
| 1980 | 0.303 | +83.6% |
| 1981 | 0.33 | +8.9% |
| 1982 | 0.327 | -0.9% |
| 1983 | 0.327 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.32 | -2.1% |
| 1985 | 0.313 | -2.2% |
| 1986 | 0.311 | -0.6% |
| 1987 | 0.217 | -30.2% |
| 1988 | 0.306 | +41.0% |
| 1989 | 0.309 | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 0.303 | -1.9% |
| 1991 | 0.31 | +2.3% |
| 1992 | 0.31 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.31 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.31 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.31 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.313 | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 0.309 | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 0.308 | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 0.31 | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 0.284 | -8.4% |
| 2001 | 0.267 | -6.0% |
| 2002 | 0.268 | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 0.269 | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 0.259 | -3.7% |
| 2005 | 0.258 | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 0.255 | -1.2% |
| 2007 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.251 | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 0.254 | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 0.265 | +4.3% |
| 2011 | 0.266 | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 0.266 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.289 | +8.6% |
| 2014 | 0.303 | +4.8% |
| 2015 | 0.302 | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 0.297 | -1.7% |
| 2017 | 0.3 | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 0.313 | +4.3% |
| 2019 | 0.304 | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 0.299 | -1.6% |
| 2021 | 0.297 | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 0.292 | -1.7% |
| 2023 | 0.296 | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 0.272 | -8.1% |
| 2025 | 0.268 | -1.5% |
Zimbabwe compared with similar countries
- Zimbabwe's 0.268 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.3475, 77% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zimbabwe's 0.268 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.317, 85% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe 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 | +194.6% | 0.056 | 0.165 |
| 1980 | +83.6% | 0.165 | 0.303 |
| 1978 | -71.0% | 0.193 | 0.056 |
| 1988 | +41.0% | 0.217 | 0.306 |
| 1987 | -30.2% | 0.311 | 0.217 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.183 | 0.182 | 0.184 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.1846 | 0.183 | 0.193 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.238 | 0.183 | 0.27 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.2681 | 0.268 | 0.269 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.2634 | 0.258 | 0.268 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.2506 | 0.228 | 0.258 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.2132 | 0.197 | 0.233 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.1772 | 0.056 | 0.197 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.3063 | 0.217 | 0.33 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.3093 | 0.303 | 0.313 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.262 | 0.251 | 0.284 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2905 | 0.265 | 0.313 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.2873 | 0.268 | 0.299 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
More social development data for Zimbabwe
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 8,570 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 6,632 (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 0.0004 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 6,632 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe?
- Varieties of democracy in Zimbabwe was 0.268 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest varieties of democracy recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 0.33 in 1981.
- What is the lowest varieties of democracy recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.056 in 1978.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for varieties of democracy?
- Zimbabwe ranks 122nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is varieties of democracy rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zimbabwe 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 — 126 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.