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Centralization of Political Power Index in Lesotho

Lesotho: Centralization of Political Power Index was 0.167 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.167
Change on year
up 3.7%
World rank
123rd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.567
in 1906
All-time low
0.148
in 2021
Years of data
126
1900–2025

Centralization of Political Power Index in Lesotho, 1900–2025

0.10.20.30.40.50.6190019622025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for centralization of political power index in Lesotho is 0.167, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.7% on the previous year and down 8.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, centralization of political power index in Lesotho peaked at 0.567 in 1906 and was at its lowest, 0.148, in 2021.

Lesotho ranks 123rd 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.

Centralization of Political Power Index in Lesotho, year by year

Year Value Change
1900 0.49 —
1901 0.49 +0.0%
1902 0.49 +0.0%
1903 0.49 +0.0%
1904 0.565 +15.3%
1905 0.497 -12.0%
1906 0.567 +14.1%
1907 0.567 +0.0%
1908 0.488 -13.9%
1909 0.488 +0.0%
1910 0.488 +0.0%
1911 0.488 +0.0%
1912 0.488 +0.0%
1913 0.488 +0.0%
1914 0.488 +0.0%
1915 0.488 +0.0%
1916 0.488 +0.0%
1917 0.488 +0.0%
1918 0.488 +0.0%
1919 0.488 +0.0%
1920 0.488 +0.0%
1921 0.488 +0.0%
1922 0.488 +0.0%
1923 0.488 +0.0%
1924 0.488 +0.0%
1925 0.488 +0.0%
1926 0.488 +0.0%
1927 0.488 +0.0%
1928 0.488 +0.0%
1929 0.488 +0.0%
1930 0.488 +0.0%
1931 0.488 +0.0%
1932 0.488 +0.0%
1933 0.488 +0.0%
1934 0.488 +0.0%
1935 0.488 +0.0%
1936 0.488 +0.0%
1937 0.488 +0.0%
1938 0.488 +0.0%
1939 0.488 +0.0%
1940 0.488 +0.0%
1941 0.488 +0.0%
1942 0.488 +0.0%
1943 0.488 +0.0%
1944 0.488 +0.0%
1945 0.488 +0.0%
1946 0.488 +0.0%
1947 0.488 +0.0%
1948 0.488 +0.0%
1949 0.488 +0.0%
1950 0.483 -1.0%
1951 0.483 +0.0%
1952 0.483 +0.0%
1953 0.483 +0.0%
1954 0.483 +0.0%
1955 0.483 +0.0%
1956 0.483 +0.0%
1957 0.483 +0.0%
1958 0.483 +0.0%
1959 0.483 +0.0%
1960 0.505 +4.6%
1961 0.505 +0.0%
1962 0.464 -8.1%
1963 0.48 +3.4%
1964 0.48 +0.0%
1965 0.376 -21.7%
1966 0.297 -21.0%
1967 0.316 +6.4%
1968 0.316 +0.0%
1969 0.415 +31.3%
1970 0.509 +22.7%
1971 0.509 +0.0%
1972 0.509 +0.0%
1973 0.427 -16.1%
1974 0.427 +0.0%
1975 0.427 +0.0%
1976 0.427 +0.0%
1977 0.427 +0.0%
1978 0.427 +0.0%
1979 0.427 +0.0%
1980 0.427 +0.0%
1981 0.427 +0.0%
1982 0.438 +2.6%
1983 0.425 -3.0%
1984 0.425 +0.0%
1985 0.425 +0.0%
1986 0.517 +21.6%
1987 0.499 -3.5%
1988 0.499 +0.0%
1989 0.499 +0.0%
1990 0.509 +2.0%
1991 0.402 -21.0%
1992 0.36 -10.4%
1993 0.254 -29.4%
1994 0.281 +10.6%
1995 0.258 -8.2%
1996 0.245 -5.0%
1997 0.245 +0.0%
1998 0.245 +0.0%
1999 0.245 +0.0%
2000 0.238 -2.9%
2001 0.238 +0.0%
2002 0.248 +4.2%
2003 0.248 +0.0%
2004 0.248 +0.0%
2005 0.248 +0.0%
2006 0.248 +0.0%
2007 0.248 +0.0%
2008 0.248 +0.0%
2009 0.248 +0.0%
2010 0.237 -4.4%
2011 0.231 -2.5%
2012 0.218 -5.6%
2013 0.186 -14.7%
2014 0.186 +0.0%
2015 0.182 -2.2%
2016 0.204 +12.1%
2017 0.192 -5.9%
2018 0.247 +28.6%
2019 0.178 -27.9%
2020 0.166 -6.7%
2021 0.148 -10.8%
2022 0.163 +10.1%
2023 0.158 -3.1%
2024 0.161 +1.9%
2025 0.167 +3.7%

Lesotho compared with similar countries

  • Lesotho's 0.167 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.5475, 31% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Lesotho's 0.167 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.683, 24% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0.5132 0.488 0.567 10
1910s 0.488 0.488 0.488 10
1920s 0.488 0.488 0.488 10
1930s 0.488 0.488 0.488 10
1940s 0.488 0.488 0.488 10
1950s 0.483 0.483 0.483 10
1960s 0.4154 0.297 0.505 10
1970s 0.4516 0.427 0.509 10
1980s 0.4581 0.425 0.517 10
1990s 0.3044 0.245 0.509 10
2000s 0.246 0.238 0.248 10
2010s 0.2061 0.178 0.247 10
2020s 0.1605 0.148 0.167 6

Countries ranked near Lesotho

  1. 120 Malta 0.176 compare
  2. 121 Slovenia 0.172 compare
  3. 122 Bhutan 0.169 compare
  4. 124 Bulgaria 0.165 compare
  5. 125 Italy 0.162 compare
  6. 126 Suriname 0.156 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Lesotho

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is centralization of political power index in Lesotho?
Centralization of political power index in Lesotho was 0.167 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest centralization of political power index recorded in Lesotho?
The highest recorded value was 0.567 in 1906.
What is the lowest centralization of political power index recorded in Lesotho?
The lowest recorded value was 0.148 in 2021.
How does Lesotho rank for centralization of political power index?
Lesotho ranks 123rd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is centralization of political power index rising or falling in Lesotho?
Over the last ten years it is down 8.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Lesotho data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Centralization of Political Power Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Centralization of Political Power Index in Lesotho. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-centralization-index/lesotho/

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About this data

Indicator
Centralization of Political Power Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,802 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which the executive is unconstrained by the legislature, judiciary, electoral management body, and other oversight.