Rule of Law Index in Burundi
Burundi: Rule of Law Index was 0.083 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
0.083
Change on year
down 19.4%
World rank
162nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.592
in 1987
All-time low
0.035
in 2018
Years of data
110
1916–2025
Rule of Law Index in Burundi, 1916–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, rule of law index in Burundi stood at 0.083.
That represents a change of down 19.4% on the previous year and up 16.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rule of law index in Burundi peaked at 0.592 in 1987 and was at its lowest, 0.035, in 2018.
Burundi ranks 162nd of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 110 years of available data.
Rule of Law Index in Burundi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1916 | 0.363 | — |
| 1917 | 0.363 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.363 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.363 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.363 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.363 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.373 | +2.8% |
| 1923 | 0.359 | -3.8% |
| 1924 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.365 | +1.7% |
| 1952 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 0.365 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.434 | +18.9% |
| 1963 | 0.417 | -3.9% |
| 1964 | 0.403 | -3.4% |
| 1965 | 0.403 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.382 | -5.2% |
| 1967 | 0.382 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.382 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.382 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.395 | +3.4% |
| 1971 | 0.395 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.389 | -1.5% |
| 1973 | 0.389 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.389 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.389 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.498 | +28.0% |
| 1977 | 0.556 | +11.6% |
| 1978 | 0.565 | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 0.565 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.565 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.565 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.565 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.578 | +2.3% |
| 1984 | 0.578 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.578 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.578 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.592 | +2.4% |
| 1988 | 0.57 | -3.7% |
| 1989 | 0.57 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.571 | +0.2% |
| 1991 | 0.571 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 0.561 | -1.8% |
| 1993 | 0.493 | -12.1% |
| 1994 | 0.457 | -7.3% |
| 1995 | 0.457 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.457 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.457 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.457 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.457 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.456 | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 0.456 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.456 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.456 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.44 | -3.5% |
| 2005 | 0.181 | -58.9% |
| 2006 | 0.161 | -11.0% |
| 2007 | 0.16 | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 0.155 | -3.1% |
| 2009 | 0.154 | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 0.133 | -13.6% |
| 2011 | 0.135 | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 0.136 | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 0.09 | -33.8% |
| 2014 | 0.083 | -7.8% |
| 2015 | 0.071 | -14.5% |
| 2016 | 0.041 | -42.3% |
| 2017 | 0.043 | +4.9% |
| 2018 | 0.035 | -18.6% |
| 2019 | 0.067 | +91.4% |
| 2020 | 0.073 | +9.0% |
| 2021 | 0.163 | +123.3% |
| 2022 | 0.192 | +17.8% |
| 2023 | 0.116 | -39.6% |
| 2024 | 0.103 | -11.2% |
| 2025 | 0.083 | -19.4% |
Burundi compared with similar countries
- Burundi's 0.083 is below the median for low income countries, which is 0.174, 48% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Burundi's 0.083 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.3685, 23% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 0.363 | 0.363 | 0.363 | 4 |
| 1920s | 0.3612 | 0.359 | 0.373 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.359 | 0.359 | 0.359 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.359 | 0.359 | 0.359 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.3644 | 0.359 | 0.365 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.3915 | 0.365 | 0.434 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.453 | 0.389 | 0.565 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.5739 | 0.565 | 0.592 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.4938 | 0.457 | 0.571 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.3075 | 0.154 | 0.456 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.0834 | 0.035 | 0.136 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.1217 | 0.073 | 0.192 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Burundi
- 159 Guinea 0.106 compare
- 160 Cameroon 0.086 compare
- 161 Afghanistan 0.084 compare
- 163 El Salvador 0.082 compare
- 164 South Sudan 0.076 compare
- 165 Cambodia 0.068 compare
More reference data data for Burundi
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0676 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5075 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.6676 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0521 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.6676 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2266 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.2677 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.17 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2838 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rule of law index in Burundi?
- Rule of law index in Burundi was 0.083 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Burundi?
- The highest recorded value was 0.592 in 1987.
- What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Burundi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.035 in 2018.
- How does Burundi rank for rule of law index?
- Burundi ranks 162nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rule of law index rising or falling in Burundi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Burundi data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Rule of Law Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 110 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent to which the government complies with the law, courts are independent, laws transparent, justice accessible, corruption absent, and the bureaucracy is impartial.