Morocco tops Arab countries in democracy ranking

Morocco has been ranked as the leading Arab country in the Visual Capitalist’s 2025 Democracy Index map, as reported by the Moroccan government-friendly Hespress and agencies on January 17th.

The Kingdom scored 4.97 out of 10 in the region’s “hybrid democracy” category; the index is based on the 2024 Democracy issue by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Countries are measured using expert assessments and public opinion surveys, along with an examination of institutional performance across five criteria: electoral procedures and pluralism, government effectiveness, political involvement, political atmosphere, and civil rights.

The system is often considered the premier comparison method for ranking governance and standards of democracy across the globe. The report described Morocco as a “hybrid regime” due to its blending of democratic and authoritarian elements.

Amongst its Arab neighbours, Morocco placed ahead of Tunisia (4.71), Mauritania (3.96), Lebanon (3.56), Algeria (3.55) and Palestine (3.44), while Qatar and the United Arab Emirates were listed as authoritarian regimes.

Morocco’s rank comes in spite of humanitarian groups condemning the imprisonment of and mistreatment of hundreds of protestors, alongside reports of human rights abuses against protestors in custody.

The Kingdom was considered average compared to the rest of the world, above authoritarian regimes, but inferior to countries classed as full democracies.

In a report from the World Press Freedom Index on December 9th, Morocco was ranked second amongst countries in the Maghreb region and 120^th overall.  The report stated that independent journalists faced increasing pressure from authorities, and many major outlets are forced to reflect government opinion.

Norway placed highest in the democracy index at 9.81 points, with Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands all listed above nine. Meanwhile, countries such as Afghanistan, Yemen, and Syria were ranked lowest, with all three scoring below 2 on the index.

The index noted a considerable difference between Morocco and “full democracies”, with civil rights, political culture and institutional development listed as areas in need of improvement.

Hespress and agencies, Maghrebi.org