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Political centralization index in Kenya

Kenya: Political centralization index was 0.18 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.18
Change on year
down 1.6%
World rank
119th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.866
in 1900
All-time low
0.153
in 2021
Years of data
126
1900–2025

Political centralization index in Kenya, 1900–2025

0.20.40.60.8190019622025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for political centralization index in Kenya is 0.18, measured in 2025.

The figure is down 1.6% on the previous year and down 13.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, political centralization index in Kenya peaked at 0.866 in 1900 and was at its lowest, 0.153, in 2021.

Kenya ranks 119th of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 126 years of available data.

Political centralization index in Kenya, year by year

Year Value Change
1900 0.866 —
1901 0.866 +0.0%
1902 0.866 +0.0%
1903 0.866 +0.0%
1904 0.866 +0.0%
1905 0.866 +0.0%
1906 0.866 +0.0%
1907 0.866 +0.0%
1908 0.778 -10.2%
1909 0.778 +0.0%
1910 0.778 +0.0%
1911 0.778 +0.0%
1912 0.778 +0.0%
1913 0.778 +0.0%
1914 0.778 +0.0%
1915 0.778 +0.0%
1916 0.778 +0.0%
1917 0.778 +0.0%
1918 0.778 +0.0%
1919 0.778 +0.0%
1920 0.778 +0.0%
1921 0.778 +0.0%
1922 0.778 +0.0%
1923 0.778 +0.0%
1924 0.778 +0.0%
1925 0.778 +0.0%
1926 0.778 +0.0%
1927 0.778 +0.0%
1928 0.778 +0.0%
1929 0.778 +0.0%
1930 0.778 +0.0%
1931 0.779 +0.1%
1932 0.779 +0.0%
1933 0.779 +0.0%
1934 0.779 +0.0%
1935 0.779 +0.0%
1936 0.779 +0.0%
1937 0.779 +0.0%
1938 0.779 +0.0%
1939 0.779 +0.0%
1940 0.779 +0.0%
1941 0.779 +0.0%
1942 0.779 +0.0%
1943 0.779 +0.0%
1944 0.779 +0.0%
1945 0.779 +0.0%
1946 0.779 +0.0%
1947 0.779 +0.0%
1948 0.779 +0.0%
1949 0.779 +0.0%
1950 0.773 -0.8%
1951 0.773 +0.0%
1952 0.773 +0.0%
1953 0.773 +0.0%
1954 0.773 +0.0%
1955 0.773 +0.0%
1956 0.773 +0.0%
1957 0.773 +0.0%
1958 0.773 +0.0%
1959 0.773 +0.0%
1960 0.772 -0.1%
1961 0.759 -1.7%
1962 0.759 +0.0%
1963 0.686 -9.6%
1964 0.613 -10.6%
1965 0.613 +0.0%
1966 0.613 +0.0%
1967 0.613 +0.0%
1968 0.613 +0.0%
1969 0.655 +6.9%
1970 0.705 +7.6%
1971 0.705 +0.0%
1972 0.705 +0.0%
1973 0.705 +0.0%
1974 0.705 +0.0%
1975 0.705 +0.0%
1976 0.705 +0.0%
1977 0.705 +0.0%
1978 0.731 +3.7%
1979 0.727 -0.5%
1980 0.736 +1.2%
1981 0.736 +0.0%
1982 0.738 +0.3%
1983 0.738 +0.0%
1984 0.738 +0.0%
1985 0.738 +0.0%
1986 0.738 +0.0%
1987 0.738 +0.0%
1988 0.738 +0.0%
1989 0.741 +0.4%
1990 0.597 -19.4%
1991 0.592 -0.8%
1992 0.558 -5.7%
1993 0.558 +0.0%
1994 0.558 +0.0%
1995 0.558 +0.0%
1996 0.558 +0.0%
1997 0.558 +0.0%
1998 0.539 -3.4%
1999 0.539 +0.0%
2000 0.493 -8.5%
2001 0.493 +0.0%
2002 0.453 -8.1%
2003 0.41 -9.5%
2004 0.41 +0.0%
2005 0.41 +0.0%
2006 0.41 +0.0%
2007 0.41 +0.0%
2008 0.402 -2.0%
2009 0.396 -1.5%
2010 0.187 -52.8%
2011 0.184 -1.6%
2012 0.189 +2.7%
2013 0.211 +11.6%
2014 0.209 -0.9%
2015 0.209 +0.0%
2016 0.212 +1.4%
2017 0.196 -7.5%
2018 0.207 +5.6%
2019 0.209 +1.0%
2020 0.21 +0.5%
2021 0.153 -27.1%
2022 0.162 +5.9%
2023 0.195 +20.4%
2024 0.183 -6.2%
2025 0.18 -1.6%

Kenya compared with similar countries

  • Kenya's 0.18 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.5475, 33% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Kenya's 0.18 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.683, 26% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0.8484 0.778 0.866 10
1910s 0.778 0.778 0.778 10
1920s 0.778 0.778 0.778 10
1930s 0.7789 0.778 0.779 10
1940s 0.779 0.779 0.779 10
1950s 0.773 0.773 0.773 10
1960s 0.6696 0.613 0.772 10
1970s 0.7098 0.705 0.731 10
1980s 0.7379 0.736 0.741 10
1990s 0.5615 0.539 0.597 10
2000s 0.4287 0.396 0.493 10
2010s 0.2013 0.184 0.212 10
2020s 0.1805 0.153 0.21 6

Countries ranked near Kenya

  1. 116 Malawi 0.193 compare
  2. 117 Poland 0.19 compare
  3. 118 Namibia 0.184 compare
  4. 120 Malta 0.176 compare
  5. 121 Slovenia 0.172 compare
  6. 122 Bhutan 0.169 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Kenya

All data for Kenya →

Frequently asked questions

What is political centralization index in Kenya?
Political centralization index in Kenya was 0.18 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest political centralization index recorded in Kenya?
The highest recorded value was 0.866 in 1900.
What is the lowest political centralization index recorded in Kenya?
The lowest recorded value was 0.153 in 2021.
How does Kenya rank for political centralization index?
Kenya ranks 119th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is political centralization index rising or falling in Kenya?
Over the last ten years it is down 13.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Kenya data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Political centralization index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Relationships involving this indicator

Comparisons with other indicators across countries. Each was re-measured with population and national income held constant, so a relationship that only reflected country size is not listed here.

All correlations →

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Political centralization index in Kenya. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 14 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-centralization-index/kenya/

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About this data

Indicator
Political centralization index
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,802 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed