Which has higher judicial checks on government index, Japan or South Africa?

South Africa, at 0.895 against 0.881 in Japan as of 2025.

What is the difference in judicial checks on government index between Japan and South Africa?

0.014, with South Africa ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Africa?

126 years are reported by both, from 1900 to 2025.

Where does this data come from?

V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Judicial Checks on Government Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Japan vs South Africa: Judicial Checks on Government Index

Japan

0.881

in 2025

South Africa

0.895

in 2025

Japan rank

33rd

South Africa rank

31st

Judicial Checks on Government Index over time

Japan
South Africa

How they compare

South Africa currently reports 0.895 against 0.881 in Japan, a difference of 0.014.

The two have swapped places 5 times across 126 shared years of data; in 1900 it was Japan ahead.

Japan ranks 33rd and South Africa ranks 31st of 176 countries.

Across the 13 decades both report, Japan averaged higher in 12 and South Africa in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Japan	South Africa	Difference	Ahead
1900s	0.672	0.469	0.203	Japan
1910s	0.674	0.469	0.205	Japan
1920s	0.675	0.469	0.206	Japan
1930s	0.675	0.469	0.206	Japan
1940s	0.7314	0.4624	0.269	Japan
1950s	0.882	0.378	0.504	Japan
1960s	0.882	0.378	0.504	Japan
1970s	0.882	0.378	0.504	Japan
1980s	0.882	0.378	0.504	Japan
1990s	0.882	0.6467	0.2353	Japan
2000s	0.882	0.8569	0.0251	Japan
2010s	0.8736	0.8564	0.0172	Japan
2020s	0.8743	0.8843	0.01	South Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher judicial checks on government index, Japan or South Africa?: South Africa, at 0.895 against 0.881 in Japan as of 2025.
What is the difference in judicial checks on government index between Japan and South Africa?: 0.014, with South Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Africa?: 126 years are reported by both, from 1900 to 2025.
How do Japan and South Africa rank globally for judicial checks on government index?: Japan ranks 33rd and South Africa ranks 31st of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Judicial Checks on Government Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Japan vs South Africa: Judicial Checks on Government Index. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 09 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/judicial-constraints-on-the-executive-index/japan/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator: Judicial Checks on Government Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,297 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 30 October 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which the executive respects the constitution, complies with the judiciary and high courts, and higher and lower courts are independent.