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Rabat – Morocco received a score of -8 in the 2026 Democracy Perception Index (DPI), placing it in the “negative” category among 98 countries surveyed worldwide. The country ranked 52nd overall.
The index, based on responses from 94,146 people surveyed between March and April 2026, measures how citizens perceive democracy and public institutions in their own countries. Unlike traditional democracy rankings that rely on expert analysis, the DPI focuses on public opinion and lived experience.
Morocco ranked below countries such as Senegal (+8), Algeria (+7), Tunisia (+4), and Ghana (+17), but performed better than several other states, including France (-20), Russia (-21), Turkiye (-14), and Kazakhstan (-31), which recorded the lowest score in the survey.
Public trust gap
According to the Morocco country profile, the country’s overall score was dragged down mainly by weak perceptions of citizen participation in political life. Morocco scored -17 on the “Citizen Participation” component, while its “Institutional Quality” score stood at 0, meaning public views on institutions were overall balanced between positive and negative opinions.
The survey measured citizen participation through four areas, including elections, civic education, political pluralism, and freedom of speech.
Morocco scored -13 for elections, -21 for civic education, -21 for political pluralism, and -12 for freedom of speech.
The results suggest that many respondents feel disconnected from political life and believe there are limits to political choice and public engagement.
The weakest scores came from civic education and political pluralism, both at -21. This indicates concerns about how well citizens understand political processes and whether people feel there are meaningful political alternatives and diverse political voices.
At the same time, Morocco’s institutional indicators were more mixed. The country scored +20 for peaceful transitions, +5 for rule of law, -8 for separation of powers, and -17 for government transparency.
The strongest result was peaceful transitions, where Morocco received a positive score, suggesting many respondents see the country as politically stable and believe transfers of power happen without major unrest or violence.
Morocco also received a slightly positive score on rule of law (+5), showing moderate public confidence in legal institutions.
However, perceptions of government transparency remained weak at -17, while separation of powers scored -8, reflecting concerns about checks and balances within the political system.
Read also: A Pencil Shook Britain — Will Morocco’s Politicians Listen?
Globally, Nordic countries led the ranking. Sweden ranked first with +29, followed by Norway (+23), Denmark (+21), Finland (+20), and Switzerland (+19). Ghana was the highest-ranked African country at +17.
Several Asian countries also recorded strong results, including India (+15), China (+14), South Korea (+12), Vietnam (+10), and Malaysia (+9).
The United States scored -1, placing it in the neutral category alongside countries such as Italy, Jordan, and Kenya.
The DPI organizers noted that perception-based results do not necessarily reflect expert evaluations of democracy, rights, or freedoms. The report stated that citizens in countries with limited media freedom or strong state narratives may still express positive opinions about political systems and institutions.
Instead, the index is designed to measure how ordinary people personally experience political participation, governance, transparency, and institutional stability in their daily lives.
