Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Lesotho
Lesotho: Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) was -0.4652 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Rule of Law - Governance estimate in Lesotho, 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, rule of law - governance estimate in Lesotho stood at -0.4652 approx. -2.5 to +2.5.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.0% on the previous year and down 325.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rule of law - governance estimate in Lesotho peaked at 0.1711 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2002 and was at its lowest, -0.5207 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2023.
That places Lesotho 132nd out of 208 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 0.0638 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | — |
| 1998 | 0.0554 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -13.1% |
| 2000 | 0.1487 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +168.4% |
| 2002 | 0.1711 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +15.1% |
| 2003 | 0.1671 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -2.4% |
| 2004 | -0.2827 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -269.2% |
| 2005 | -0.0633 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -77.6% |
| 2006 | -0.111 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +75.3% |
| 2007 | -0.1352 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +21.7% |
| 2008 | -0.1521 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +12.5% |
| 2009 | -0.1474 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.1% |
| 2010 | -0.2432 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +65.0% |
| 2011 | -0.2355 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.2% |
| 2012 | -0.2006 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -14.8% |
| 2013 | -0.2057 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +2.6% |
| 2014 | -0.133 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -35.4% |
| 2015 | -0.1094 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -17.7% |
| 2016 | -0.1592 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +45.5% |
| 2017 | -0.2327 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +46.1% |
| 2018 | -0.335 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +44.0% |
| 2019 | -0.3058 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -8.7% |
| 2020 | -0.3896 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +27.4% |
| 2021 | -0.431 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +10.6% |
| 2022 | -0.4956 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +15.0% |
| 2023 | -0.5207 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +5.1% |
| 2024 | -0.4387 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -15.8% |
| 2025 | -0.4652 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +6.0% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's -0.4652 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is -0.6884 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 68% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's -0.4652 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -0.8846 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 53% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Lesotho changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | -269.2% | 0.1671 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.2827 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.0596 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 0.0554 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 0.0638 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 2 |
| 2000s | -0.045 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.2827 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 0.1711 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 9 |
| 2010s | -0.216 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.335 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.1094 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.4568 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.5207 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.3896 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 129 Sao Tome and Principe -0.4536 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 130 Benin -0.4561 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 131 Azerbaijan -0.4572 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 133 Philippines -0.4709 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 134 Kenya -0.4744 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 135 Brazil -0.4855 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
More reference data data for Lesotho
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0331 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5388 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0101 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1115 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.48 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0549 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rule of law - governance estimate in Lesotho?
- Rule of law - governance estimate in Lesotho was -0.4652 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 rule of law - governance estimate recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 0.1711 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2002.
- What is the lowest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.5207 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2023.
- How does Lesotho rank for rule of law - governance estimate?
- Lesotho ranks 132nd out of 208 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rule of law - governance estimate rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 325.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Lesotho 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 Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rule of Law (RL) captures perceptions of the extent to which agents respect and follow the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police, courts, and the likelihood of crime and violence. 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.