Africa and the Human Freedom Index

 The Cato Institute just released its "Human Freedom Index 2020" by Ian Vasquez and Fred McMahon.  It discusses and ranks 162 countries.

The best ranked African country is Cape Verde at number 44 followed by Mauritius at number 51.  The bottom 20 is represented by 14 African countries: Zimbabwe (141), Republic of Congo (143), Angola (144), Cameroon (145), Guinea (146), Burundi (148), Ethiopia (149), Mauritania (150), DRC (151), CAR (153), Algeria (154), Libya (156), Egypt (157), and Sudan (161).  

Human Freedom Index - 2017 - East Africa and the Horn

The Washington-based CATO Institute, the Fraser Institute in Canada, and the Liberales Institut at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Germany have published the "2017 Human Freedom Index." It ranks 159 countries based on 79 distinct indicators using data from 2008 to 2017.

It ranked only four countries in East Africa and the Horn, all of which fell below the midpoint. Kenya performed best at number 89, followed by Uganda at 94 and Tanzania at 99. Ethiopia had the lowest regional ranking at number 146. The other countries in the Horn of Africa were not included.

2014 Index of Economic Freedom

The Heritage Foundation, based in Washington, just released its "2014 Index of Economic Freedom" that ranked 177 countries.  The best performer in East Africa and the Horn was Uganda at number 79, followed by Tanzania (98), Kenya (114), Djibouti (127), Ethiopia (146), and Eritrea (173).  The Heritage Foundation did not rank Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia. 

2013 Index of Economic Freedom - East Africa and the Horn

For more than a decade, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington-based think tank, The Heritage Foundation, have published an annual ranking called the Index of Economic Freedom.  It ranks countries globally based on social and economic values such as per capita income, economic growth rates, human development, democracy, the elimination of poverty, and environmental protection.  The 2013 edition ranked 177 countries with Hong Kong ranked best and North Korea ranked worst.  It ranked the United States #10.  Click here to access the global rankings.

Countries in East Africa and the Horn did not fare well.  Only one--Uganda--was included in the "moderately free" category and ranked number 79.  In the "mostly unfree" category were Tanzania (#98), Kenya (#114), and Djibouti (#127).  Ethiopia, ranked #146, and Eritrea, ranked #173, were in the "repressed" category.  Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia were not ranked.