Government Effectiveness - Governance score in South Africa

South Africa: Government Effectiveness - Governance score was 46.95 0-100 in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
46.95 0-100
Change on year
down 1.7%
World rank
123rd
of 206 countries
All-time high
63.31 0-100
in 1996
All-time low
46.95 0-100
in 2024
Years of data
26
1996–2024

Government Effectiveness - Governance score in South Africa, 1996–2024

02040601996201020241996: 63.3 0-1001998: 57.3 0-1002000: 60.5 0-1002002: 59.7 0-1002003: 60.2 0-1002004: 60.5 0-1002005: 60.9 0-1002006: 58.8 0-1002007: 57.8 0-1002008: 57.3 0-1002009: 58.7 0-1002010: 56.6 0-1002011: 57.3 0-1002012: 57.5 0-1002013: 57.8 0-1002014: 57.8 0-1002015: 56.1 0-1002016: 55.3 0-1002017: 55.7 0-1002018: 54.2 0-1002019: 55 0-1002020: 53.2 0-1002021: 52.2 0-1002022: 51.3 0-1002023: 47.7 0-1002024: 46.9 0-100

Source: World Bank. Measured in 0-100.

Analysis

The most recent figure for government effectiveness - governance score in South Africa is 46.95 0-100, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.

The figure is down 1.7% on the previous year and down 18.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, government effectiveness - governance score in South Africa peaked at 63.31 0-100 in 1996 and was at its lowest, 46.95 0-100, in 2024.

That places South Africa 123rd out of 206 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.

Government Effectiveness - Governance score in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Government Effectiveness - Governance score (0-100) in South Africa, 1996 to 2024.
Year 0-100 Change
1996 63.31 0-100 —
1998 57.29 0-100 -9.5%
2000 60.54 0-100 +5.7%
2002 59.68 0-100 -1.4%
2003 60.23 0-100 +0.9%
2004 60.48 0-100 +0.4%
2005 60.93 0-100 +0.7%
2006 58.78 0-100 -3.5%
2007 57.8 0-100 -1.7%
2008 57.27 0-100 -0.9%
2009 58.66 0-100 +2.4%
2010 56.63 0-100 -3.5%
2011 57.27 0-100 +1.1%
2012 57.49 0-100 +0.4%
2013 57.82 0-100 +0.6%
2014 57.78 0-100 -0.1%
2015 56.09 0-100 -2.9%
2016 55.25 0-100 -1.5%
2017 55.67 0-100 +0.8%
2018 54.22 0-100 -2.6%
2019 55.02 0-100 +1.5%
2020 53.19 0-100 -3.3%
2021 52.16 0-100 -1.9%
2022 51.31 0-100 -1.6%
2023 47.75 0-100 -6.9%
2024 46.95 0-100 -1.7%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 46.95 0-100 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 49.55 0-100, 95% of the median. (59 countries reporting)
  • South Africa's 46.95 0-100 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 36.26 0-100, 1.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 60.3 0-100 57.29 0-100 63.31 0-100 2
2000s 59.37 0-100 57.27 0-100 60.93 0-100 9
2010s 56.33 0-100 54.22 0-100 57.82 0-100 10
2020s 50.27 0-100 46.95 0-100 53.19 0-100 5

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 120 Mexico 47.06 0-100 compare
  2. 121 Maldives 47.04 0-100 compare
  3. 122 Brazil 46.98 0-100 compare
  4. 124 Tunisia 46.69 0-100 compare
  5. 125 Algeria 46.46 0-100 compare
  6. 126 Puerto Rico 46.38 0-100 compare

See the full ranking of 206 places →

More reference data data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is government effectiveness - governance score in South Africa?
Government effectiveness - governance score in South Africa was 46.95 0-100 in 2024, according to the World Bank.
What is the highest government effectiveness - governance score recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 63.31 0-100 in 1996.
What is the lowest government effectiveness - governance score recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 46.95 0-100 in 2024.
How does South Africa rank for government effectiveness - governance score?
South Africa ranks 123rd out of 206 countries with data for 2024.
Is government effectiveness - governance score rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 18.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Government Effectiveness - Governance score (0-100). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Government Effectiveness - Governance score in South Africa. Statizoid. Retrieved 29 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-effectiveness-governance-score-0-100-2/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-effectiveness-governance-score-0-100-2/south-africa/">Government Effectiveness - Governance score in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Government Effectiveness - Governance score (0-100)
Unit
0-100
Source
World Bank
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
206 places, 5,187 data points, 1996–2024
Last refreshed