Government Effectiveness - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Malawi
Malawi: Government Effectiveness - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) was -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Government Effectiveness - Governance estimate in Malawi, 1996–2025
Source: The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Measured in approx. -2.5 to +2.5.
Analysis
In 2025, government effectiveness - governance estimate in Malawi stood at -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5.
That represents a change of up 4.4% on the previous year and down 29.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government effectiveness - governance estimate in Malawi peaked at -0.3755 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2010 and was at its lowest, -1.19 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2003.
That places Malawi 151st out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Government Effectiveness - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Malawi, year by year
| Year | approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | -1.06 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | — |
| 1998 | -0.8034 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -24.2% |
| 2000 | -0.8037 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | -1.15 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +43.4% |
| 2003 | -1.19 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +3.5% |
| 2004 | -1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -15.5% |
| 2005 | -0.9628 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.5% |
| 2006 | -0.877 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -8.9% |
| 2007 | -0.822 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -6.3% |
| 2008 | -0.4994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -39.2% |
| 2009 | -0.4089 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -18.1% |
| 2010 | -0.3755 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -8.2% |
| 2011 | -0.4038 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +7.6% |
| 2012 | -0.414 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +2.5% |
| 2013 | -0.4452 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +7.5% |
| 2014 | -0.4264 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.2% |
| 2015 | -0.4662 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +9.3% |
| 2016 | -0.4972 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +6.7% |
| 2017 | -0.4592 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -7.6% |
| 2018 | -0.5195 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +13.1% |
| 2019 | -0.5725 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +10.2% |
| 2020 | -0.6482 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +13.2% |
| 2021 | -0.5813 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -10.3% |
| 2022 | -0.6929 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +19.2% |
| 2023 | -0.6723 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.0% |
| 2024 | -0.6305 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -6.2% |
| 2025 | -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.4% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for low income countries, which is -1.25 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 48% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -0.793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 76% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -0.9318 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.06 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.8034 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 2 |
| 2000s | -0.8586 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.19 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.4089 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 9 |
| 2010s | -0.4579 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.5725 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.3755 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.638 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.6929 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.5813 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More reference data data for Malawi
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1596 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3426 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5353 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.6012 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.87 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government effectiveness - governance estimate in Malawi?
- Government effectiveness - governance estimate in Malawi was -0.6029 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025, according to The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG).
- What is the highest government effectiveness - governance estimate recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was -0.3755 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2010.
- What is the lowest government effectiveness - governance estimate recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.19 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2003.
- How does Malawi rank for government effectiveness - governance estimate?
- Malawi ranks 151st out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is government effectiveness - governance estimate rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG), published as part of Government Effectiveness - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Government Effectiveness (GE) captures perceptions of the quality of public services, the civil service, policy formulation and implementation, and the credibility of a government’s decisions. Governance estimate from the aggregation model, in units of a standard normal distribution, i.e. ranging from approximately -2.5 to 2.5. Larger values correspond to better governance. The (country-series-time) metadata include the (a) number of sources, and (b) standard error. The number of sources indicates the number of underlying data sources on which the governance estimate is based. The standard error indicates the precision of the governance estimate. Larger values indicate less precise estimates. A 90% confidence interval for the governance estimate is given by the estimate +/- 1.64 times the standard error.