What is rule of law index in Zimbabwe?

Rule of law index in Zimbabwe was 0.177 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Zimbabwe?

The highest recorded value was 0.697 in 1954.

What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Zimbabwe?

The lowest recorded value was 0.177 in 2023.

How does Zimbabwe rank for rule of law index?

Zimbabwe ranks 143rd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is rule of law index rising or falling in Zimbabwe?

Over the last ten years it is down 43.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Zimbabwe 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.

Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe

Name: Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Zimbabwe: Rule of Law Index was 0.177 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)

0.177

Change on year

down 9.2%

World rank

143rd

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.697

in 1954

All-time low

0.177

in 2023

Years of data

126

1900–2025

Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe, 1900–2025

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for rule of law index in Zimbabwe is 0.177, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 126 years on record.

That represents a change of down 9.2% on the previous year and down 43.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law index in Zimbabwe peaked at 0.697 in 1954 and was at its lowest, 0.177, in 2023.

Zimbabwe ranks 143rd of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

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

Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe, year by year

Annual values for Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe, 1900 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1900	0.568	—
1901	0.568	+0.0%
1902	0.568	+0.0%
1903	0.568	+0.0%
1904	0.568	+0.0%
1905	0.568	+0.0%
1906	0.568	+0.0%
1907	0.568	+0.0%
1908	0.568	+0.0%
1909	0.568	+0.0%
1910	0.568	+0.0%
1911	0.568	+0.0%
1912	0.568	+0.0%
1913	0.568	+0.0%
1914	0.568	+0.0%
1915	0.568	+0.0%
1916	0.568	+0.0%
1917	0.568	+0.0%
1918	0.568	+0.0%
1919	0.568	+0.0%
1920	0.568	+0.0%
1921	0.568	+0.0%
1922	0.568	+0.0%
1923	0.616	+8.5%
1924	0.633	+2.8%
1925	0.633	+0.0%
1926	0.633	+0.0%
1927	0.633	+0.0%
1928	0.633	+0.0%
1929	0.633	+0.0%
1930	0.633	+0.0%
1931	0.633	+0.0%
1932	0.633	+0.0%
1933	0.633	+0.0%
1934	0.633	+0.0%
1935	0.633	+0.0%
1936	0.633	+0.0%
1937	0.633	+0.0%
1938	0.633	+0.0%
1939	0.633	+0.0%
1940	0.633	+0.0%
1941	0.633	+0.0%
1942	0.633	+0.0%
1943	0.633	+0.0%
1944	0.633	+0.0%
1945	0.641	+1.3%
1946	0.669	+4.4%
1947	0.669	+0.0%
1948	0.669	+0.0%
1949	0.669	+0.0%
1950	0.669	+0.0%
1951	0.669	+0.0%
1952	0.669	+0.0%
1953	0.675	+0.9%
1954	0.697	+3.3%
1955	0.697	+0.0%
1956	0.697	+0.0%
1957	0.697	+0.0%
1958	0.697	+0.0%
1959	0.689	-1.1%
1960	0.67	-2.8%
1961	0.67	+0.0%
1962	0.67	+0.0%
1963	0.67	+0.0%
1964	0.531	-20.7%
1965	0.517	-2.6%
1966	0.517	+0.0%
1967	0.517	+0.0%
1968	0.517	+0.0%
1969	0.51	-1.4%
1970	0.51	+0.0%
1971	0.51	+0.0%
1972	0.51	+0.0%
1973	0.51	+0.0%
1974	0.51	+0.0%
1975	0.51	+0.0%
1976	0.51	+0.0%
1977	0.51	+0.0%
1978	0.51	+0.0%
1979	0.51	+0.0%
1980	0.646	+26.7%
1981	0.652	+0.9%
1982	0.652	+0.0%
1983	0.652	+0.0%
1984	0.652	+0.0%
1985	0.652	+0.0%
1986	0.652	+0.0%
1987	0.647	-0.8%
1988	0.656	+1.4%
1989	0.665	+1.4%
1990	0.629	-5.4%
1991	0.629	+0.0%
1992	0.629	+0.0%
1993	0.629	+0.0%
1994	0.629	+0.0%
1995	0.629	+0.0%
1996	0.629	+0.0%
1997	0.629	+0.0%
1998	0.585	-7.0%
1999	0.585	+0.0%
2000	0.274	-53.2%
2001	0.225	-17.9%
2002	0.225	+0.0%
2003	0.188	-16.4%
2004	0.188	+0.0%
2005	0.188	+0.0%
2006	0.188	+0.0%
2007	0.188	+0.0%
2008	0.188	+0.0%
2009	0.247	+31.4%
2010	0.325	+31.6%
2011	0.325	+0.0%
2012	0.329	+1.2%
2013	0.348	+5.8%
2014	0.315	-9.5%
2015	0.311	-1.3%
2016	0.292	-6.1%
2017	0.281	-3.8%
2018	0.263	-6.4%
2019	0.241	-8.4%
2020	0.238	-1.2%
2021	0.223	-6.3%
2022	0.218	-2.2%
2023	0.177	-18.8%
2024	0.195	+10.2%
2025	0.177	-9.2%

Zimbabwe compared with similar countries

Zimbabwe's 0.177 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.3495, 51% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
Zimbabwe's 0.177 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.3685, 48% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1900s	0.568	0.568	0.568	10
1910s	0.568	0.568	0.568	10
1920s	0.6118	0.568	0.633	10
1930s	0.633	0.633	0.633	10
1940s	0.6482	0.633	0.669	10
1950s	0.6856	0.669	0.697	10
1960s	0.5789	0.51	0.67	10
1970s	0.51	0.51	0.51	10
1980s	0.6526	0.646	0.665	10
1990s	0.6202	0.585	0.629	10
2000s	0.2099	0.188	0.274	10
2010s	0.303	0.241	0.348	10
2020s	0.2047	0.177	0.238	6

Countries ranked near Zimbabwe

140 Togo 0.207 compare
141 Iraq 0.199 compare
142 Congo 0.182 compare
144 Comoros 0.175 compare
145 Sudan 0.174 compare
146 Haiti 0.171 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Zimbabwe

Exchange rate, new LCU per USD extended backward, period average 58,959 (2026)
Exchange rate, old LCU per USD extended forward, period average 58,959 (2026)
Official exchange rate, LCU per USD, period average 58,959 (2026)
Political opposition, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Elected parliament and government, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Global number of reported disasters by size, gaps filled 0 events (2024)
Annual precipitation, annual growth rate 122.78 % change on previous year (2025)
Free country, gaps filled 0 (2025)
Civil liberties rating, gaps filled 5 (2025)
Civil liberties rating, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)

All data for Zimbabwe →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law index in Zimbabwe?: Rule of law index in Zimbabwe was 0.177 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Zimbabwe?: The highest recorded value was 0.697 in 1954.
What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Zimbabwe?: The lowest recorded value was 0.177 in 2023.
How does Zimbabwe rank for rule of law index?: Zimbabwe ranks 143rd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is rule of law index rising or falling in Zimbabwe?: Over the last ten years it is down 43.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Zimbabwe 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.

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Rule of Law Index in Zimbabwe. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rule-of-law-index/zimbabwe/

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About this data

Indicator: Rule of Law Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 30,303 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

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.