Interested in joining us as a guest blogger for Democracy Notes?
Send your proposal
Menu Menu Close
Africa
Americas
Asia and the Pacific
Europe
Western Asia

Democracy Tracker

The Democracy Tracker provides event-centric, monthly information on democracy and human rights developments in 173 countries. Event reports include a description of the event, indications of the specific aspects of democracy that have been impacted, the magnitude of the impact, links to original sources and keywords to enable further research. Click on the country hexagons below to read the most recent developments, or hover over to the country profiles menu at the top to access the full data and analysis of a specific country.

Positive and Negative Events in April 2024

+1
Argentina Arrow Argentina
+1
Brazil Arrow Brazil
+1
Czechia Arrow Czechia
+1
Germany Arrow Germany
+1
Lithuania Arrow Lithuania
+1
Republic of Moldova Arrow Republic of Moldova
+1
Switzerland Arrow Switzerland
-1
Burkina Faso Arrow Burkina Faso
-1
Cuba Arrow Cuba
-1
Ecuador Arrow Ecuador
-1
El Salvador Arrow El Salvador
-1
Ethiopia Arrow Ethiopia
-1
Iraq Arrow Iraq
-1
Lebanon Arrow Lebanon
-1
New Zealand Arrow New Zealand
-1
Sudan Arrow Sudan
-1
Syrian Arab Republic Arrow Syrian Arab Republic
-1
Türkiye Arrow Türkiye
-1
UK Arrow UK
-1
United States of America Arrow United States of America
-1
Venezuela Arrow Venezuela
-2
Mali Arrow Mali

*Assessments are relative to each country and do not represent comparisons or rankings between countries.

Flag
May 2022

Malaysia

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Proin consequat augue non efficitur fermentum. Proin eu...

Representation
Rights
Rule of Law
Participation

Critical Events in April 2024

Asia and the Pacific • New Zealand

A years-long crisis in New Zealand’s media industry worsened significantly enough in March and April 2024 that observers are raising concerns over the industry’s ability to adequately inform the public and hold politicians to account. Television and online news company Newshub announced it would shut down on 10 April and lay off nearly 300 staff. With its closure and layoffs elsewhere over the last several months, the country now has only one television news service, the state-owned broadcaster TVNZ – which also reduced its news programming and laid off 60 news journalists in April. While media around the world have struggled to adjust their business models to the internet age, the situation is particularly acute in New Zealand, where the number of working journalists has declined from 4071 in 2000 to 1674 today. Media concentration has become severe, as 78.5 per cent of journalists work for one of five employers. Public relations professionals now outnumber their media counterparts by as much as ten to one, leading one observer to label New Zealand “a public relations democracy” and others to raise concerns over the consequences for freedom of media and expression in the country.
Media concentration
SDG16

Africa • Mali

On 10 April, Mali’s transitional government announced that it was suspending the activities of all political parties and associations in the country ‘until further notice.’ The following day all media were directed by the state’s media regulator to halt their coverage of these organizations. The suspensions were justified with reference to an ongoing national peace dialogue, which the government spokesperson said needed to ‘take place in a climate of serenity not cacophony.’ Commentators have suggested that the suspensions were a response to a demand made on 31 March by more than 80 political parties and associations for a presidential election and a return to constitutional order ‘as soon as possible.’ A presidential election had been due to take place in February 2024 but was not held, meaning that the deadline for Mali’s transition to democratic rule (26 March) was not met.                
Political Party
Media
Military Junta
Civil Society
SDG16

Americas • El Salvador

After the Salvadorean general elections of 4 February, on 29 April the outgoing (lame duck) Legislative Assembly dominated by the ruling party, Nuevas Ideas (NI) approved a modification to Article 248 of the Constitution. It must be ratified by the incoming legislature, which was sworn in on 2 May, to enter into force, and will establish a new way to amend a constitutional provision.   Previously, amendments required a simple majority approval by a sitting legislature and a subsequent ratification from two-thirds of the incoming legislature. The Article's revised text will add that constitutional amendments may be ratified by a three fourths majority within one legislature.   This decision has been criticized as an attempt to diminish what few checks on the executive power are left, enabling the incoming legislature to expedite amendments proposed by the President (54 out of 60 incoming Assembly members belong to NI). The amendment overly empowers short-term legislative majorities, undermining the longer-term effectiveness of the institution. Opposition members have rejected this process because of how it was rushed without prior discussion or analysis.  
Legislature
Constitutional reform
SDG16

About the Global State of Democracy Initiative

International IDEA launched the Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Initiative in 2016. This Initiative provides evidence-based and balanced analysis and data on the state and quality of democracy globally and for 173 countries across all regions of the world. It aims to contribute to the public debate on democracy and inform policy interventions to strengthen democracy.

Monthly Event Reports

See all the information related to countries that have updates this month.

Africa

-2
Arrow MLI
-1
Arrow BFA
0
Arrow TGO
-1
Arrow ETH
-1
Arrow SDN
0
Arrow GAB
without report
Arrow ZAF
without report
Arrow MDG
without report
Arrow ZWE
without report
Arrow DZA
without report
Arrow AGO
without report
Arrow BEN
without report
Arrow BWA
without report
Arrow BDI
without report
Arrow CMR
without report
Arrow CAF
without report
Arrow TCD
without report
Arrow COM
without report
Arrow CIV
without report
Arrow CPV
without report
Arrow COD
without report
Arrow DJI
without report
Arrow EGY
without report
Arrow GNQ
without report
Arrow ERI
without report
Arrow GMB
without report
Arrow SWZ
without report
Arrow GHA
without report
Arrow GIN
without report
Arrow GNB
without report
Arrow KEN
without report
Arrow LSO
without report
Arrow LBR
without report
Arrow LBY
without report
Arrow MWI
without report
Arrow MRT
without report
Arrow MUS
without report
Arrow MAR
without report
Arrow MOZ
without report
Arrow NAM
without report
Arrow NER
without report
Arrow NGA
without report
Arrow COG
without report
Arrow RWA
without report
Arrow SEN
without report
Arrow SLE
without report
Arrow SOM
without report
Arrow SSD
without report
Arrow TZA
without report
Arrow TUN
without report
Arrow UGA
without report
Arrow ZMB
View all

Americas

-1
Arrow CUB
+1
Arrow BRA
+1
Arrow ARG
0
Arrow HTI
-1
Arrow SLV
0
Arrow MEX
-1
Arrow USA
-1
Arrow ECU
-1
Arrow VEN
without report
Arrow CAN
without report
Arrow BRB
without report
Arrow BOL
without report
Arrow CHL
without report
Arrow COL
without report
Arrow CRI
without report
Arrow DOM
without report
Arrow GTM
without report
Arrow GUY
without report
Arrow HND
without report
Arrow JAM
without report
Arrow NIC
without report
Arrow PAN
without report
Arrow PRY
without report
Arrow PER
without report
Arrow SUR
without report
Arrow TTO
without report
Arrow URY
View all

Asia and the Pacific

0
Arrow KOR
0
Arrow SGP
0
Arrow MDV
-1
Arrow NZL
0
Arrow VNM
without report
Arrow TWN
without report
Arrow LKA
without report
Arrow MYS
without report
Arrow MMR
without report
Arrow TLS
without report
Arrow AFG
without report
Arrow JPN
without report
Arrow AUS
without report
Arrow BGD
without report
Arrow BTN
without report
Arrow KHM
without report
Arrow CHN
without report
Arrow PRK
without report
Arrow FJI
without report
Arrow IND
without report
Arrow IDN
without report
Arrow KAZ
without report
Arrow KGZ
without report
Arrow LAO
without report
Arrow MNG
without report
Arrow NPL
without report
Arrow PAK
without report
Arrow PNG
without report
Arrow PHL
without report
Arrow SLB
without report
Arrow TJK
without report
Arrow THA
without report
Arrow TKM
without report
Arrow UZB
without report
Arrow VUT
View all

Europe

+1
Arrow LTU
0
Arrow HRV
+1
Arrow CZE
0
Arrow SVK
0
Arrow ARM
+1
Arrow MDA
+1
Arrow DEU
+1
Arrow CHE
-1
Arrow GBR
-1
Arrow TUR
without report
Arrow ESP
without report
Arrow UKR
without report
Arrow HUN
without report
Arrow KSV
without report
Arrow ALB
without report
Arrow AUT
without report
Arrow AZE
without report
Arrow BLR
without report
Arrow BEL
without report
Arrow BIH
without report
Arrow BGR
without report
Arrow CYP
without report
Arrow DNK
without report
Arrow EST
without report
Arrow FIN
without report
Arrow FRA
without report
Arrow GEO
without report
Arrow GRC
without report
Arrow ISL
without report
Arrow IRL
without report
Arrow ITA
without report
Arrow LVA
without report
Arrow LUX
without report
Arrow MLT
without report
Arrow MNE
without report
Arrow NLD
without report
Arrow MKD
without report
Arrow NOR
without report
Arrow POL
without report
Arrow PRT
without report
Arrow ROU
without report
Arrow RUS
without report
Arrow SRB
without report
Arrow SVN
without report
Arrow SWE
View all

Western Asia

0
Arrow KWT
-1
Arrow LBN
-1
Arrow IRQ
-1
Arrow SYR
without report
Arrow BHR
without report
Arrow IRN
without report
Arrow ISR
without report
Arrow JOR
without report
Arrow OMN
without report
Arrow PSE
without report
Arrow QAT
without report
Arrow SAU
without report
Arrow ARE
without report
Arrow YEM
View all
Flag
May 2022

Malaysia

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Proin consequat augue non efficitur fermentum. Proin eu...

Representation
Rights
Rule of Law
Participation

Stay updated on the Global State of Democracy

Get the latest Democracy Tracker developments delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for the Democracy Tracker monthly newsletter

Contact Us

Contact us to request tailored presentations and trainings, or to send your questions and feedback.

Funders and Donors

The European Union Federal Ministry for Economic Coorperation and Development Robert Bosch Stiftung
The Global State of Democracy Initiative is also supported by contributions of International IDEA Member States