Methodology
The Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) is a composite index which gives a statistical measure of governance performance in 54 African countries. The 2020 IIAG dataset, which is its 13th iteration, spans a ten-year period (2010-2019).
Governance is defined by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation as the provision of the political, social, economic and environmental public goods and services that every citizen has the right to expect from their government, and that a government has the responsibility to deliver to its citizens.
The IIAG governance framework comprises four categories:
- Security & Rule of Law
- Participation, Rights & Inclusion
- Foundations for Economic Opportunity, and
- Human Development.
These categories are made up of 16 sub-categories, consisting of 79 indicators. Compiled by combining 237 variables from 40 independent African and global institutions, the 2020 IIAG is the most comprehensive collection of data on African governance.
A new IIAG dataset is released every two years. IIAG datasets are not comparable between themselves, as each iteration covers a different ten-year period, data are revised retrospectively, and revision of the theoretical framework takes place between iterations. Users of the Index should therefore always reference the most recent version of the IIAG dataset.
Citizens’ Voices
Citizens’ Voices is a new IIAG section dedicated to measure public opinion on governance issues. Citizens’ Voices mirrors the IIAG categories and provides public perception data on the closest proxies to the IIAG measures.
The Public Perception of Overall Governance score is the result of aggregating the underlying four sub-section scores: Public Perception of Security & Rule of Law, Public Perception of Participation, Rights & Inclusion, Public Perception of Economic Opportunity Foundations, and Public Perception of Human Development. Organised underneath the four sub-sections, there are 13 indicators that are formed by 35 variables from source.
All the raw data in the Citizens’ Voices section is sourced from Afrobarometer. Calculated as a separate index, Citizens’ Voices scores are not counted in the calculation of IIAG scores.
Calculation stages
- Variables that are consistent with the Foundation’s definition of governance and meet specific standards of quality, periodicity and country coverage are selected and missing raw data values are estimated
- Raw data come in different scales from source. In order to be compared and combined, data are transformed to a standardised (normalised) range of 0.0-100.0, where 100.0 is the best possible score.
- Once the 237 variables have been transformed to a common scale, a simple method of aggregation is applied to calculate the scores. The successive unweighted averages are carried out following the IIAG framework structure. The Overall Governance score is the average of the underlying category scores; the category scores are the average of their underlying sub-categories; and the sub-categories are the average of their constituent indicators. The majority of indicators contain sub-indicators, some of which have underlying variables (sub-sub-indicators).
A similar methodology is applied to calculate the Citizens’ Voices section scores.
Note on decimal place precision in the 2020 IIAG
All figures on IIAG outputs are displayed to one decimal place. The calculation method to arrive at these scores is as follows:
- Country scores are calculated on full-precision raw data values (using the exact values as they are collected from source). All scores are then rounded to one decimal place.
- Group averages are calculated on the rounded, one decimal place country scores.
- Both change over time (trends) and ranks are calculated on the scores to one decimal place. When two countries have the same score to one decimal place, they have tied ranks.
The exception to this are the annual average trend figures. These are calculated on the rounded trends over time and displayed to two decimal places. Trend classifications are assigned based on the full precision of the annual average trends over the ten years (2010-2019) and five years (2015-2019).
African Electoral Index, Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Download File (pdf)Africa Integrity Indicators, Global Integrity (AII GI)
Download File (pdf)Rule of Law Index, World Justice Project
Download File (pdf)Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem), University of Gothenburg
Download File (pdf)If you would like to view how data from Afrobarometer was coded for inclusion in the 2020 IIAG, please see the following document:
Coding Methodology for Afrobarometer in the 2020 IIAG
Download File (pdf)IIAG data sources
The 2020 IIAG consists of 79 indicators that are formed by 237 variables, from 40 independent, external data sources.
Security & Rule of Law
21 indicators in four sub-categories:
Security & Safety
Absence of Armed Conflict
Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project | Armed Conflict Location & Event Dataset |
Uppsala University, Department of Peace and Conflict Research | Uppsala Conflict Data Programme |
Absence of Violence against Civilians
Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project | Armed Conflict Location & Event Dataset |
The Political Terror Scale | The Political Terror Scale |
Absence of Forced Migration
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre | GIDD: Global Internal Displacement Database |
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees | UNHCR’s Refugee Population Statistics Database |
Absence of Human Trafficking & Forced Labour
United States Department of State | Trafficking in Persons Report |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Absence of Criminality
World Health Organization | Global Health Observatory |
Rule of Law & Justice
Executive Compliance with the Rule of Law
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Impartiality of the Judicial System
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Judicial Processes
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Equality before the Law
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Law Enforcement
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Property Rights
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Accountability & Transparency
Institutional Checks & Balances
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Civic Checks & Balances
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Absence of Undue Influence on Government
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
Disclosure of Financial & Judicial Information
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
International Budget Partnership | Open Budget Survey |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Accessibility of Information
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Anti-Corruption
Anti-Corruption Mechanisms
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Absence of Corruption in State Institutions
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Absence of Corruption in the Public Sector
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Public Procurement Procedures
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Absence of Corruption in the Private Sector
World Bank | Worldwide Governance Indicators |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
Participation, Rights & Inclusion
19 indicators in four sub-categories:
Participation
Freedom of Association & Assembly
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Political Pluralism
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Civil Society Space
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Democratic Elections
Ghana Center for Democratic Development | African Electoral Index: 2000-2019 |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Rights
Personal Liberties
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Freedom of Expression & Belief
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Media Freedom
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Reporters sans frontiers | World Press Freedom Index |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Digital Rights
Digital Society Project & Varieties of Democracy Institute | Digital Society Survey |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Protection against Discrimination
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Inclusion & Equality
Equal Political Power
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Equal Political Representation
Freedom House | Freedom in the World |
Inter-Parliamentary Union | Parline: Global data on national parliaments |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Equal Civil Liberties
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Equal Socioeconomic Opportunity
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Equal Access to Public Services
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Gender
Political Power & Representation of Women
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Inter-Parliamentary Union | Parline: Global data on national parliaments |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Bank | Gender Statistics |
Equal Civil Liberties for Women
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Socioeconomic Opportunity for Women
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Equal Access to Public Services for Women
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Laws on Violence against Women
OECD Development Centre | Social Institutions and Gender Index |
Foundations for Economic Opportunity
18 indicators in four sub-categories:
Public Administration
Civil Registration
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Capacity of the Statistical System
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Open Data Watch | Open Data Inventory |
World Bank | Statistical Capacity Indicators |
Tax & Revenue Mobilisation
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
International Centre for Tax and Development & United Nations University - World Institute for Development Economics Research | .Government Revenue Dataset |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Budgetary & Financial Management
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Professional Administration
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Business Environment
Regional Integration
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Trade Environment
World Bank | Doing Business |
World Bank | Logistics Performance Index |
Business & Competition Regulations
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
Access to Financial Services
World Bank | Global Findex |
Labour Relations
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
Infrastructure
Transport Network
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
Universal Postal Union | Integrated Index for Postal Development (2IPD) |
Access to Energy
World Bank | World Development Indicators |
Mobile Communications
International Telecommunication Union | World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database |
Digital Access
International Telecommunication Union | World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database |
World Bank | World Development Indicators |
Rural Sector
Rural Land & Water Access
International Fund for Agricultural Development | Performance-based Allocation System |
Rural Market Access
International Fund for Agricultural Development | Performance-based Allocation System |
Rural Sector Support
International Fund for Agricultural Development | Performance-based Allocation System |
Rural Businesses & Organisations
International Fund for Agricultural Development | Performance-based Allocation System |
Human Development
21 indicators in four sub-categories:
Health
Access to Healthcare
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
World Health Organization | Global Health Observatory |
Access to Water & Sanitation
World Health Organization/United Nations Children's Fund | Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation Database |
Control of Communicable Diseases
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS | AIDSinfo Database |
World Health Organization | Global Health Observatory |
Control of Non-Communicable Diseases
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation | Global Burden of Disease |
Control of Child & Maternal Mortality
UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation | Child Mortality Estimates |
UN Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-agency Group | Trends in Maternal Mortality: 2000-2017 |
Compliance with International Health Regulations
World Health Organization | Global Health Observatory |
Education
Equality in Education
World Bank | EdStats |
Varieties of Democracy Institute | Varieties of Democracy Project |
Education Enrolment
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation | UNESCO Institute for Statistics |
Education Completion
United Nations Development Programme | Human Development Reports |
World Bank | EdStats |
Human Resources in Education
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation | UNESCO Institute for Statistics |
Education Quality
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
Social Protection
Social Safety Nets
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
Global Integrity | Africa Integrity Indicators |
Poverty Reduction Policies
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Socioeconomic Inequality Mitigation
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
WID.world | World Inequality Database |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Access to Housing
Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa | Housing Finance in Africa Yearbook |
United Nations Human Settlements Programme | Urban Indicators Database |
Absence of Undernourishment
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | FAOSTAT |
Sustainable Environment
Promotion of Environmental Sustainability
African Development Bank | AfDB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Bertelsmann Stiftung | Bertelsmann Transformation Index |
World Bank | WB Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) |
Enforcement of Environmental Policies
World Economic Forum | Executive Opinion Survey |
World Justice Project | Rule of Law Index |
Air Quality
Health Effects Institute & Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation | State of Global Air |
Sustainable Management of Land & Forests
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | FAOSTAT |
World Bank | World Development Indicators |
World Resources Institute | Global Forest Watch |
Land & Water Biodiversity
Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy/Center for International Earth Science Information Network Earth Institute, Columbia University | Environmental Performance Index |
World Bank | World Development Indicators |
Citizens’ Voices data sources
The Citizens’ Voices section consists of 13 indicators that are formed by 35 variables. All of them come from one same data source:
Afrobarometer | Afrobarometer Surveys |