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Strong Elected Local Governments Index in Malawi

Malawi: Strong Elected Local Governments Index was 0.895 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.895
Change on year
down 0.8%
World rank
71st
of 175 countries
All-time high
0.968
in 2020
All-time low
0.264
in 1900
Years of data
126
1900–2025

Strong Elected Local Governments Index in Malawi, 1900–2025

0.20.40.60.81190019622025

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

Analysis

Malawi recorded 0.895 for strong elected local governments index in 2025.

The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 3.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, strong elected local governments index in Malawi peaked at 0.968 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.264, in 1900.

That places Malawi 71st out of 175 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.

Strong Elected Local Governments Index in Malawi, year by year

Year Value Change
1900 0.264 —
1901 0.264 +0.0%
1902 0.264 +0.0%
1903 0.264 +0.0%
1904 0.264 +0.0%
1905 0.264 +0.0%
1906 0.264 +0.0%
1907 0.264 +0.0%
1908 0.264 +0.0%
1909 0.264 +0.0%
1910 0.264 +0.0%
1911 0.264 +0.0%
1912 0.264 +0.0%
1913 0.264 +0.0%
1914 0.264 +0.0%
1915 0.264 +0.0%
1916 0.264 +0.0%
1917 0.264 +0.0%
1918 0.264 +0.0%
1919 0.264 +0.0%
1920 0.264 +0.0%
1921 0.264 +0.0%
1922 0.264 +0.0%
1923 0.264 +0.0%
1924 0.264 +0.0%
1925 0.264 +0.0%
1926 0.264 +0.0%
1927 0.264 +0.0%
1928 0.264 +0.0%
1929 0.264 +0.0%
1930 0.264 +0.0%
1931 0.264 +0.0%
1932 0.264 +0.0%
1933 0.264 +0.0%
1934 0.264 +0.0%
1935 0.264 +0.0%
1936 0.264 +0.0%
1937 0.264 +0.0%
1938 0.264 +0.0%
1939 0.264 +0.0%
1940 0.264 +0.0%
1941 0.264 +0.0%
1942 0.264 +0.0%
1943 0.264 +0.0%
1944 0.264 +0.0%
1945 0.264 +0.0%
1946 0.264 +0.0%
1947 0.264 +0.0%
1948 0.264 +0.0%
1949 0.264 +0.0%
1950 0.264 +0.0%
1951 0.264 +0.0%
1952 0.264 +0.0%
1953 0.264 +0.0%
1954 0.264 +0.0%
1955 0.264 +0.0%
1956 0.264 +0.0%
1957 0.264 +0.0%
1958 0.264 +0.0%
1959 0.264 +0.0%
1960 0.264 +0.0%
1961 0.745 +182.2%
1962 0.745 +0.0%
1963 0.745 +0.0%
1964 0.745 +0.0%
1965 0.745 +0.0%
1966 0.381 -48.9%
1967 0.381 +0.0%
1968 0.381 +0.0%
1969 0.381 +0.0%
1970 0.381 +0.0%
1971 0.381 +0.0%
1972 0.381 +0.0%
1973 0.381 +0.0%
1974 0.381 +0.0%
1975 0.381 +0.0%
1976 0.381 +0.0%
1977 0.381 +0.0%
1978 0.381 +0.0%
1979 0.381 +0.0%
1980 0.381 +0.0%
1981 0.381 +0.0%
1982 0.381 +0.0%
1983 0.381 +0.0%
1984 0.381 +0.0%
1985 0.381 +0.0%
1986 0.381 +0.0%
1987 0.381 +0.0%
1988 0.381 +0.0%
1989 0.381 +0.0%
1990 0.381 +0.0%
1991 0.381 +0.0%
1992 0.381 +0.0%
1993 0.381 +0.0%
1994 0.381 +0.0%
1995 0.381 +0.0%
1996 0.381 +0.0%
1997 0.381 +0.0%
1998 0.381 +0.0%
1999 0.381 +0.0%
2000 0.825 +116.5%
2001 0.825 +0.0%
2002 0.825 +0.0%
2003 0.825 +0.0%
2004 0.413 -49.9%
2005 0.413 +0.0%
2006 0.413 +0.0%
2007 0.413 +0.0%
2008 0.413 +0.0%
2009 0.413 +0.0%
2010 0.413 +0.0%
2011 0.422 +2.2%
2012 0.421 -0.2%
2013 0.465 +10.5%
2014 0.927 +99.4%
2015 0.927 +0.0%
2016 0.945 +1.9%
2017 0.966 +2.2%
2018 0.924 -4.3%
2019 0.924 +0.0%
2020 0.968 +4.8%
2021 0.968 +0.0%
2022 0.859 -11.3%
2023 0.931 +8.4%
2024 0.902 -3.1%
2025 0.895 -0.8%

Malawi compared with similar countries

  • Malawi's 0.895 is above the median for low income countries, which is 0.474, 1.9× the median. (25 countries reporting)
  • Malawi's 0.895 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.7165, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1910s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1920s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1930s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1940s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1950s 0.264 0.264 0.264 10
1960s 0.5513 0.264 0.745 10
1970s 0.381 0.381 0.381 10
1980s 0.381 0.381 0.381 10
1990s 0.381 0.381 0.381 10
2000s 0.5778 0.413 0.825 10
2010s 0.7334 0.413 0.966 10
2020s 0.9205 0.859 0.968 6

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 68 Sao Tome and Principe 0.911 compare
  2. 69 Burundi 0.909 compare
  3. 69 Lesotho 0.909 compare
  4. 71 Netherlands 0.895 compare
  5. 71 Nigeria 0.895 compare
  6. 71 Tanzania 0.895 compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is strong elected local governments index in Malawi?
Strong elected local governments index in Malawi was 0.895 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest strong elected local governments index recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 0.968 in 2020.
What is the lowest strong elected local governments index recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 0.264 in 1900.
How does Malawi rank for strong elected local governments index?
Malawi ranks 71st out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
Is strong elected local governments index rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is down 3.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Strong Elected Local Governments Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Strong Elected Local Governments Index in Malawi. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/strong-elected-local-governments-index/malawi/

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About this data

Indicator
Strong Elected Local Governments Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
175 places, 25,933 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which elected local governments exist, and they operate without interference from local unelected bodies.