The Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) recently released its report: “Democracy Index 2021”. The index attempts to measure the state of democracy worldwide in 165 independent countries and two territories. The Democracy Index was first released in 2006.
Overview of the Democracy Index 2021
| Published by | Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) |
| Top five performers | 1. Norway 2. New Zealand 3. Finland 4. Sweden 5. Iceland |
| Bottom five performers | Central African Republic (163rd position). Democratic Republic of Congo (164th position). North Korea (165th position). Myanmar (166th position). Afghanistan (167th position). |
| India ranks | 46th position |
About the Democracy Index 2021
The report is based on 60 indicators, grouped into five categories: Functioning of government, Electoral process and pluralism, Civil liberties, Political Participation, and Political Culture.
The index describes the state of democracy in 165 countries and two territories. The Countries are given a rating on a scale of ‘0’ to ’10’. The overall ranking is the average of the five total categories scores.
The index then categorises each country into four types of regimes based on their average scores: Full Democracies, Flawed Democracies, Hybrid Regimes, and Authoritarian Regimes.
Key Highlights of the Democracy Index 2021
Top performing countries in the index
Norway topped the Democracy Index 2021 with an overall score of 9.75, followed by New Zealand at the second position and Finland at the third position.
| Rank | Country | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway | 9.75 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 9.37 |
| 3 | Finland | 9.27 |
| 4 | Sweden | 9.26 |
| 5 | Iceland | 9.18 |
| 6 | Denmark | 9.09 |
| 7 | Ireland | 9.00 |
| 8 | Taiwan | 8.99 |
| 9 | Australia | 8.90 |
| 10 | Switzerland | 8.90 |
Bottom 10 performing countries in the index
Afghanistan ranked the bottom-most at 167th position with an overall score of 0.32, followed by Myanmar at 166th position (1.02 score) and North Korea at 165th position (1.08 score).
Countries that showed improvement
Singapore, UAE, Uruguay, Montenegro, India, Republic of Congo, Guyana, Zambia, Moldova, Qatar, Indonesia.
Report about democracy
More than one-third of the world’s population is living under authoritarian rule. As per the report, 6.4% enjoys full democracy. The current global democracy score is 5.28 out of 10.
| Types of regime | Score | Countries | Countries percentage | World population (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full democracies | 8.01 – 10 | 21 | 12.6% | 6.4% |
| Flawed democracies | 6.01 – 8.00 | 53 | 31.7% | 39.3% |
| Hybrid regimes | 4.01 – 6.00 | 34 | 20.4% | 17.2% |
| Authoritarian regimes | 0 – 4.00 | 59 | 35.3% | 37.1% |
India’s Ranking
India ranked at 46th position with an overall score of 6.91 in the Democracy Index 2021 in the flawed democracy category. The individual scores of India in the five categories are as follow:
| Parameters | Score |
|---|---|
| Electoral process and pluralism | 8.67 |
| Functioning of government | 7.50 |
| Political Participation | 7.22 |
| Civil Liberties | 6.18 |
| Political Culture | 5 |
Report of India’s neighbour
| Type of regime | Countries |
|---|---|
| Flawed democracy | Sri Lanka ranked at 67th position. |
| Hybrid regime | Bangladesh (75th position), Bhutan (81st position), Nepal (101st position), Pakistan (104th position). |
| Authoritarian regime | China (148th position), Myanmar (166th position), Afghanistan (167th position). |
Region-wise ranking
| Rank | Region | Countries | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North America | 2 | 8.36 |
| 2 | Western Europe | 21 | 8.23 |
| 3 | Latin America and the Caribbean | 24 | 5.83 |
| 4 | Asia and Australasia | 28 | 5.46 |
| 5 | Central and Eastern Europe | 28 | 5.36 |
| 6 | Sub-Saharan Africa | 44 | 4.12 |
| 7 | The Middle East and North Africa | 20 | 3.41 |
| World | 167 | 5.28 |