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Photo: Caitlin from Hertfordshire, UK derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 01 of 12 · Country Index 2026
Eswatini: Governance & Institutions
How well is the state actually run?
Eswatini is placed 163rd of 193 countries on governance & institutions in the Country Index 2026, from 5 of its 5 key statistics. Readings behind it: Government Effectiveness -0.781 (2024); Government AI Readiness Index 27.7 (2025).
Governance & Institutions
163rd
of 193 countries placed
Placed from 5 of 5 key statistics
- -0.781Government Effectiveness, 2024Governance estimate (−2.5 weak to 2.5 strong)
- 27.7Government AI Readiness Index, 2025AI readiness score (0–100)
- 60.97Statistical Performance Indicators, 2024SPI overall score (0–100)
- 23Corruption Perceptions Index, 2025CPI score (0–100, where 100 is very clean)
- 34Open Data Inventory, 2024ODIN overall score (0–100)
01The evidence
The 5 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Eswatini on governance & institutions — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used; the grey ticks are every other country in that edition, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 5
Government Effectiveness
World Bank Group
Why it is a key: The quality of public services and the civil service that delivers them, and the credibility of a government's commitment to its own policies. Where the Corruption Perceptions Index asks whether a state is honest, this asks whether it is competent.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
-0.781
Governance estimate (−2.5 weak to 2.5 strong)
Higher is better
Eswatini: -0.781. Across the 209 countries in this edition, values run from -2.173 (South Sudan) to 2.28 (Singapore); the world median is 0.01.
- World median
- 0.01
- Best in Southern Africa
- 0.417 Botswana
- Land neighbours
- Mozambique -0.716 · South Africa -0.226
Each grey tick is one of 209 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 2 of 5
Government AI Readiness Index
Oxford Insights
Why it is a key: Government capacity to adopt modern technology in public service delivery. Correlates 0.835 with Statistical Performance, inside the 0.92 bar, and kept because readiness to use data is not the same as the ability to collect it.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0
27.7
AI readiness score (0–100)
Higher is better
Ranked 137th of 195 by Oxford Insights
Eswatini: 27.7. Across the 195 countries in this edition, values run from 12.12 (Guinea-Bissau) to 88.36 (United States); the world median is 40.19.
- World median
- 40.19
- Best in Southern Africa
- 53.94 South Africa
- Land neighbours
- Mozambique 22.31 · South Africa 53.94
Each grey tick is one of 195 countries in the 2025 edition.
Key 3 of 5
Statistical Performance Indicators
World Bank Group
Why it is a key: Whether a state can measure its own country. Nothing else here tests the capacity of the statistical system itself.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
60.97
SPI overall score (0–100)
Higher is better
Eswatini: 60.97. Across the 188 countries in this edition, values run from 27.12 (South Sudan) to 94.14 (Norway); the world median is 69.3.
- World median
- 69.3
- Best in Southern Africa
- 81.29 South Africa
- Land neighbours
- Mozambique 66.74 · South Africa 81.29
Each grey tick is one of 188 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 4 of 5
Corruption Perceptions Index
Transparency International
Why it is a key: How much corruption the people who actually deal with a government perceive — an outcome, where the rest of this topic measures capacity.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY 4.0 (the data), CC BY-ND 4.0 (the website and report)
23
CPI score (0–100, where 100 is very clean)
Higher is better
Ranked 153rd of 181 by Transparency International
Eswatini: 23. Across the 182 countries in this edition, values run from 9 (Somalia) to 89 (Denmark); the world median is 39.
- World median
- 39
- Best in Southern Africa
- 58 Botswana
- Land neighbours
- Mozambique 21 · South Africa 41
Each grey tick is one of 182 countries in the 2025 edition.
Key 5 of 5
Open Data Inventory
Open Data Watch
Why it is a key: Whether official statistics are published openly and usably, which is a separate question from whether they are produced at all.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
34
ODIN overall score (0–100)
Higher is better
Ranked 154th of 168 by Open Data Watch
Eswatini: 34. Across the 168 countries in this edition, values run from 19 (Turkmenistan) to 90 (Poland); the world median is 59.
- World median
- 59
- Best in Southern Africa
- 51 South Africa
- Land neighbours
- Mozambique 50 · South Africa 51
Each grey tick is one of 168 countries in the 2024 edition.
02Over time
Which way Eswatini is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
Government Effectiveness
Governance estimate (−2.5 weak to 2.5 strong) · higher is better
EswatiniWorld median
Eswatini fell from -0.279 in 2000 to -0.781 in 2024; the world median went from -0.316 to 0.01.
Every year’s figures
Year Eswatini World median 2024 -0.7811 0.0100 2023 -0.7178 -0.0178 2022 -0.6321 -0.0433 2021 -0.7233 -0.0445 2020 -0.6236 -0.0570 2019 -0.4962 0.0008 2018 -0.4509 -0.0850 2017 -0.2875 -0.0494 2016 -0.2484 -0.0573 2015 -0.2900 -0.0652 2014 -0.2741 -0.0643 2013 -0.2076 -0.1437 2012 -0.1872 -0.1872 2011 -0.3543 -0.2491 2010 -0.2557 -0.2029 2009 -0.3985 -0.2422 2008 -0.3147 -0.2768 2007 -0.5905 -0.2973 2006 -0.5610 -0.3138 2005 -1.0842 -0.3488 2004 -1.1298 -0.2985 2003 -0.8083 -0.4232 2002 -0.2791 -0.3086 2000 -0.2794 -0.3159 Government AI Readiness Index
AI readiness score (0–100) · higher is better
EswatiniWorld median
Eswatini rose from 27.7 in 2020 to 27.7 in 2025; the world median went from 39.58 to 40.19.
Every year’s figures
Year Eswatini World median 2025 27.700 40.2 2024 36.225 43.3 2023 27.053 41.4 2022 25.457 40.3 2021 29.756 44.1 2020 27.699 39.6 Statistical Performance Indicators
SPI overall score (0–100) · higher is better
EswatiniWorld median
Eswatini rose from 46.2 in 2016 to 60.97 in 2024; the world median went from 56.25 to 69.3.
Every year’s figures
Year Eswatini World median 2024 61 69.30 2023 62 68.86 2022 53 67.99 2021 56 69.96 2020 47 62.91 2019 51 61.19 2018 59 61.17 2017 50 59.55 2016 46 56.25 Corruption Perceptions Index
CPI score (0–100, where 100 is very clean) · higher is better
EswatiniWorld median
Eswatini fell from 37 in 2012 to 23 in 2025; the world median went from 37 to 39.
Every year’s figures
Year Eswatini World median 2025 23 39.0 2024 27 40.0 2023 30 40.0 2022 30 39.5 2021 32 39.0 2020 33 40.0 2019 34 39.5 2018 38 38.0 2017 39 38.5 2016 — 38.0 2015 — 37.0 2014 43 38.0 2013 39 38.0 2012 37 37.0 Open Data Inventory
ODIN overall score (0–100) · higher is better
EswatiniWorld median
Eswatini rose from 7 in 2015 to 34 in 2024; the world median went from 32 to 59.
Every year’s figures
Year Eswatini World median 2024 34 59 2022 15 51 2020 10 50 2018 16 44 2017 7 38 2016 5 39 2015 7 32
03In context
Eswatini beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 193 countries on governance & institutions, never a place within the region.
1st193rdNot placed · 31 countries with too few key statisticsNo data
Eswatini and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 193 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | Government EffectivenessGovernance estimate (−2.5 weak to 2.5 strong) | Government AI Readiness IndexAI readiness score (0–100) | Statistical Performance IndicatorsSPI overall score (0–100) | Corruption Perceptions IndexCPI score (0–100, where 100 is very clean) | Open Data InventoryODIN overall score (0–100) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 South Africa | 82nd | -0.226 | 53.94 | 81.29 | 41 | 51 |
 Mozambique | 154th | -0.716 | 22.31 | 66.74 | 21 | 50 |
| Eswatini | 163rd | -0.781 | 27.7 | 60.97 | 23 | 34 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Southern Africa
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 193.
- South Africa82nd
Botswana87th
Namibia111th
Lesotho144th- Eswatini163rd
Placed either side on governance & institutions
The countries immediately above and below Eswatini in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Eswatini is ahead of the world, and behind
16 more statistics filed under governance & institutions, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median5
Statistics on which Eswatini does better than the middle country measured.
Agriculture Orientation IndexFAO · 2024 · world median 0.3050.890.305▲ Improved since 2014
Eswatini: 0.89 · world median 0.305 · Agriculture orientation index (1.0 = spending matches sector size). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.03 to 5.38; higher is better.
Position 19th of 132 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Debt Service on External DebtWorld Bank Group · 2024 · world median 12.937.67212.93▲ Improved since 2014
Eswatini: 7.672 · world median 12.93 · Total debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 0.285 to 96.2; lower is better.
Position 87th of 109 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
External Debt Stocks (% of GNI)World Bank Group · 2024 · world median 43.9427.7543.94▼ Worsened since 2014
Eswatini: 27.75 · world median 43.94 · External debt stocks (% of GNI). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 2.213 to 350.57; lower is better.
Position 87th of 110 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Government Spending on EducationUIS · 2023 · world median 3.7095.0043.709▲ Improved since 2013
Eswatini: 5.004 · world median 3.709 · Government expenditure on education (% of GDP). UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 16.39; higher is better.
Position 31st of 123 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Trade Union DensityILO · 2020 · world median 16.6823.8816.68No earlier reading
Eswatini: 23.88 · world median 16.68 · Employees who are trade union members (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2020 edition, data for 2020.
Published values in that edition run from 0.2 to 91.42; higher is better.
Position 42nd of 139 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median9
Statistics on which Eswatini does worse than the middle country measured.
Country Policy and Institutional AssessmentWorld Bank Group · 2025 · world median 3.2463.1333.246No real change since 2024
Eswatini: 3.133 · world median 3.246 · IDA Resource Allocation Index (1 = low to 6 = high). World Bank Group, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 1.617 to 4.225; higher is better.
Position 43rd of 78 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Social Protection CoverageILO · 2025 · world median 52.136.152.1No earlier reading
Eswatini: 36.1 · world median 52.1 · Population covered by at least one social protection benefit (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 100; higher is better.
Regulatory QualityWorld Bank Group · 2024 · world median -0.09-0.638-0.09▼ Worsened since 2014
Eswatini: -0.638 · world median -0.09 · Regulatory Quality (−2.5 to 2.5). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from -2.035 to 2.132; higher is better.
Position 153rd of 209 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Rule of LawWorld Bank Group · 2024 · world median -0.1-0.86-0.1▼ Worsened since 2014
Eswatini: -0.86 · world median -0.1 · Rule of Law estimate (−2.5 to 2.5). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from -2.205 to 2.021; higher is better.
Position 158th of 211 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Completeness of Birth RegistrationUNICEF · 2025 · world median 98.465.798.4No earlier reading
Eswatini: 65.7 · world median 98.4 · Children under 5 whose birth is registered (%). UNICEF, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 2.7 to 100; higher is better.
Civic Space RatingsCIVICUS · 2025 · world median 50.4615.4350.46No earlier reading
Eswatini: 15.43 · world median 50.46 · Civic space score (0–100). CIVICUS, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 2.17 to 100; higher is better.
Position 173rd of 198 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Voice and AccountabilityWorld Bank Group · 2024 · world median -0.02-1.347-0.02▲ Improved since 2014
Eswatini: -1.347 · world median -0.02 · Voice and Accountability estimate (−2.5 to 2.5). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from -2.29 to 1.929; higher is better.
Position 183rd of 208 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
V-Dem Electoral Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 2025 · world median 0.4970.1280.497No real change since 2015
Eswatini: 0.128 · world median 0.497 · Electoral democracy index (0–1). V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.016 to 0.913; higher is better.
Position 166th of 176 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Women, Business and the LawWorld Bank Group · 2024 · world median 81.2546.2581.25▼ Worsened since 2014
Eswatini: 46.25 · world median 81.25 · WBL Index (0–100, where 100 is full legal parity). World Bank Group, 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 26.25 to 100; higher is better.
Position 181st of 190 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end2
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Public Sector Wage BillWorld Bank Group · 2022 · world median 7.97511.357.975No real change since 2012
Eswatini: 11.35 · world median 7.975 · Public sector wage bill (% of GDP). World Bank Group, 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 0.977 to 42.65.
Position 35th of 168 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Public Sector EmploymentWorld Bank Group · 2022 · world median 15.0117.6615.01No earlier reading
Eswatini: 17.66 · world median 15.01 · Public sector employment (% of total employment). World Bank Group, 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 1.672 to 47.1.
Position 59th of 135 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No current reading for Eswatini
Business Ready: Operational Efficiency, Business Ready: Public Services, Business Ready: Regulatory Framework, General Government Consumption (last 2024) and Government Funding per Primary Student (last 2014). Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Governance & Institutions among Eswatini’s 11 topics
Governance & Institutions is Eswatini’s 7th best-placed topic of 11. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Environment & Sustainabilityjoint 27th of 1613/3 keys
- Economy & Innovation77th of 1503/3 keys
- Risk & Resilience114th of 1913/3 keys
- Education & Knowledge114th of 1823/4 keys
- Peace & Security124th of 1773/3 keys
- Development & Human Capital146th of 1943/3 keys
- Governance & Institutions163rd of 1935/5 keys
- Health & Wellbeing173rd of 2014/4 keys
- Gender & Equalityjoint 158th of 1782/3 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties178th of 1983/3 keys
- Work & Labour174th of 1824/4 keys
No standing on Mobility & Connectivity: too few of those topics’ key statistics are published for this country.
06The top of the list
Who leads on governance & institutions
The three countries placed highest of 193, and the leaders Eswatini can most readily be measured against.
1
DenmarkNorthern Europe
1st of 193 · 5 of 5 keys
Photo: User:Aconcagua · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
2
NorwayNorthern Europe
2nd of 193 · 5 of 5 keys
Photo: Ximonic , Simo Räsänen · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
3
FinlandNorthern Europe
3rd of 193 · 5 of 5 keys
Photo: Joonas Lyytinen · CC BY-SA 2.5, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Africa
Mauritius49th5/5 keysHighest in Southern Africa
South Africa82nd5/5 keysThis page
Eswatini163rd5/5 keys
Positions out of 193 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Analysis
Charts and analysis about Eswatini and governance & institutions
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08Questions
Eswatini on governance & institutions: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Eswatini rank on governance & institutions?
Eswatini is placed 163rd of 193 countries on Governance & Institutions in the Country Index 2026, from 5 of its 5 key statistics (Government Effectiveness, Government AI Readiness Index, Statistical Performance Indicators, Corruption Perceptions Index and Open Data Inventory). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest Government Effectiveness figure for Eswatini?
-0.781 in 2024 (governance estimate (−2.5 weak to 2.5 strong)), according to World Bank Group. The world median in the same edition was 0.01.
What is the latest Government AI Readiness Index figure for Eswatini?
27.7 in 2025 (aI readiness score (0–100)), according to Oxford Insights. The world median in the same edition was 40.19.
How does Eswatini compare with South Africa on governance & institutions?
South Africa is placed 82nd of 193, and Eswatini 163rd. Government Effectiveness: South Africa -0.226, Eswatini -0.781; Government AI Readiness Index: South Africa 53.94, Eswatini 27.7; Statistical Performance Indicators: South Africa 81.29, Eswatini 60.97; Corruption Perceptions Index: South Africa 41, Eswatini 23; Open Data Inventory: South Africa 51, Eswatini 34.
How have Eswatini’s governance & institutions figures changed?
Government Effectiveness fell from -0.279 in 2000 to -0.781 in 2024; Government AI Readiness Index rose from 27.7 in 2020 to 27.7 in 2025; Statistical Performance Indicators rose from 46.2 in 2016 to 60.97 in 2024; Corruption Perceptions Index fell from 37 in 2012 to 23 in 2025; Open Data Inventory rose from 7 in 2015 to 34 in 2024.
Which governance & institutions statistics are missing for Eswatini?
No current reading is published for Eswatini on Business Ready: Operational Efficiency, Business Ready: Public Services, Business Ready: Regulatory Framework, General Government Consumption and Government Funding per Primary Student. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
09Keep reading
Explore further
Eswatini, topic by topic
- Economy & Innovation77th of 150
- Work & Labour174th of 182
- Education & Knowledge114th of 182
- Health & Wellbeing173rd of 201
- Development & Human Capital146th of 194
- Environment & Sustainability=27th of 161
- Gender & Equality=158th of 178
- Democracy & Civil Liberties178th of 198
- Peace & Security124th of 177
- Risk & Resilience114th of 191
- The full Eswatini profile
Nearby, on governance & institutions
The key statistics, for every country
10Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Governance is not democracy. Free elections, civil liberties and press freedom belong to the Democracy & Civil Liberties topic, and a country can place well on one and poorly on the other. Nor does this topic measure the size of government or how much it spends — the share of the economy run by the state is published on this page as context, with no better end.
How the Governance & Institutions standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 5 indicators on this topic are keys and 21 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2024 to 2025, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 3 of this topic’s 5 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 193 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 5.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- Government Effectiveness — World Bank Group, CC BY 4.0
- Government AI Readiness Index — Oxford Insights, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Statistical Performance Indicators — World Bank Group, CC BY 4.0
- Corruption Perceptions Index — Transparency International, CC BY 4.0 (the data), CC BY-ND 4.0 (the website and report)
- Open Data Inventory — Open Data Watch, CC BY 4.0
The other 16 statistics on this page come from 7 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Eswatini’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Eswatini (banner) — Caitlin from Hertfordshire, UK derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY 2.0
- Denmark — User:Aconcagua, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Norway — Ximonic , Simo Räsänen, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Finland — Joonas Lyytinen, CC BY-SA 2.5
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Eswatini: Governance & Institutions — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/eswatini/governance