Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Japan

Japan: Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) was 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
Change on year
up 3.2%
World rank
31st
of 208 countries
All-time high
1.24 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 2011
All-time low
0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 2000
Years of data
27
1996–2025

Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate in Japan, 1996–2025

00.250.50.7511.21996201020251996: 0.771 approx. -2.5 to +2.51998: 0.726 approx. -2.5 to +2.52000: 0.724 approx. -2.5 to +2.52002: 1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52003: 1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52004: 0.965 approx. -2.5 to +2.52005: 1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52006: 1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52007: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52008: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52009: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52010: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52011: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52012: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52013: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52014: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52015: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52016: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52017: 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.52018: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52019: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52020: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52021: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52022: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52023: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52024: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.52025: 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.5

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

The most recent figure for voice and accountability - governance estimate in Japan is 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, measured in 2025.

That represents a change of up 3.2% on the previous year and down 3.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, voice and accountability - governance estimate in Japan peaked at 1.24 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2011 and was at its lowest, 0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2000.

Japan ranks 31st of 208 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Japan, year by year

Annual values for Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Japan, 1996 to 2025.
Year approx. -2.5 to +2.5 Change
1996 0.7712 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 —
1998 0.726 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -5.9%
2000 0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.3%
2002 1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +39.2%
2003 1.04 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +2.8%
2004 0.9648 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -6.9%
2005 1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +4.4%
2006 1.02 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +1.3%
2007 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +7.4%
2008 1.09 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.2%
2009 1.18 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +8.3%
2010 1.2 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +1.3%
2011 1.24 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +3.7%
2012 1.22 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -1.6%
2013 1.17 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -4.2%
2014 1.18 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +0.9%
2015 1.14 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -3.5%
2016 1.13 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.8%
2017 1.15 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +1.9%
2018 1.09 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -5.2%
2019 1.06 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -3.5%
2020 1.05 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.3%
2021 1.06 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +0.4%
2022 1.07 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +1.2%
2023 1.08 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +0.7%
2024 1.07 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.3%
2025 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +3.2%

Japan compared with similar countries

  • Japan's 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.02 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 1.1× the median. (76 countries reporting)
  • Japan's 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.334 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 3.3× the median. (36 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Japan 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.

YearChange FromTo
2002 +39.2% 0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.7486 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.726 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.7712 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 2
2000s 1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.18 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 9
2010s 1.16 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.06 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.24 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 10
2020s 1.07 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.05 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 6

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 28 Spain 1.12 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  2. 29 Aruba 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  3. 29 Cayman Islands 1.11 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  4. 32 Slovenia 1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  5. 33 Barbados 1.09 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  6. 34 Italy 1.08 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare

See the full ranking of 208 places →

More reference data data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is voice and accountability - governance estimate in Japan?
Voice and accountability - governance estimate in Japan was 1.11 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 voice and accountability - governance estimate recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 1.24 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2011.
What is the lowest voice and accountability - governance estimate recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 0.7242 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2000.
How does Japan rank for voice and accountability - governance estimate?
Japan ranks 31st out of 208 countries with data for 2025.
Is voice and accountability - governance estimate rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is down 3.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Japan 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 Voice and Accountability - 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).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate in Japan. Statizoid, drawing on The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/voice-and-accountability-governance-estimate-approx-2-5-to-2-5/japan/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/voice-and-accountability-governance-estimate-approx-2-5-to-2-5/japan/">Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate in Japan</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5)
Unit
approx. -2.5 to +2.5
Source
The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
208 places, 5,514 data points, 1996–2025
Last refreshed

Voice and Accountability (VA) captures perceptions of the extent to which citizens can participate in selecting their government including electoral integrity, and of accountability mechanisms for citizens—reflected in the ability to access information, governmental oversight bodies, and a robust traditional/digital media landscape. 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.