Government Effectiveness in South Africa
South Africa: Government Effectiveness was 0.3689 in 2011. ▼ Falling
Government Effectiveness in South Africa, 1996–2011
Source: World Bank Institute.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government effectiveness in South Africa is 0.3689, measured in 2011. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is down 3.5% on the previous year and down 46.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government effectiveness in South Africa peaked at 0.8765 in 1996 and was at its lowest, 0.3689, in 2011.
South Africa ranks 3rd of 53 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.7403 | 0.6041 | 0.8765 | 2 |
| 2000s | 0.5938 | 0.4626 | 0.6914 | 9 |
| 2010s | 0.3757 | 0.3689 | 0.3824 | 2 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 1 Mauritius 0.7552 compare
- 2 Botswana 0.5347 compare
- 4 Seychelles 0.2366 compare
- 5 Cape Verde 0.1138 compare
- 6 Rwanda 0.0654 compare
More reference data data for South Africa
- Spring temperature anomalies 0.191 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 1.36 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.6318 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 1.18 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.2153 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 209.92 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government effectiveness in South Africa?
- Government effectiveness in South Africa was 0.3689 in 2011, according to World Bank Institute.
- What is the highest government effectiveness recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.8765 in 1996.
- What is the lowest government effectiveness recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3689 in 2011.
- How does South Africa rank for government effectiveness?
- South Africa ranks 3rd out of 53 countries with data for 2011.
- Is government effectiveness rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 46.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Institute, published as part of Government Effectiveness (estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Government effectiveness measures the quality of public services, the quality and degree of independence from political pressures of the civil service, the quality of policy formulation and implementation, and the credibility of the government’s commitment to such policies. Further documentation and research using the World Governance Indicators (WGI) is available at www.worldbank.org/wbi/governance.