Freedom House released the 2025 edition of its annual Freedom in the World report (February 2025). The report covers political rights and civil liberties in 2024 in 195 countries and 13 territories. It assigns one of three ratings: Free, Partly Free and Not Free, depending on how rights and freedoms are ensured in practice.
Human Level’s Take:
- Democracy and open civic space are foundations for human rights, ensuring that people can fulfill their basic needs. They are also important for companies, lending to stability and the rule of law, government transparency and accountability, and a level playing field for business. This means that global backsliding on democracy is concerning for companies committed to doing business with respect for human rights.
- Freedom House reports that for the 19th consecutive year, global freedom has deteriorated. Today, 40% of the world’s population lives in countries ranked as "Not Free," 40% in "Partly Free" nations, and just 20% in "Free" countries. In 2024, 42% of people experienced a decline in freedom, while only 15% saw improvements.
- This trend is expected to worsen as authoritarian regimes tighten their grip, silence political opposition, and suppress dissent with force. However, Freedom House also highlights signs of hope—new democratic governments emerging in countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Senegal, and Botswana, and commitments to reform in places like Guatemala and Poland. To sustain this momentum, action from both political leaders and influential actors like businesses is crucial.
- Companies have a unique opportunity to support free and open societies. They can advocate for policies that promote transparency and accountability, avoid lobbying that undermines democratic values, empower workers by supporting freedom of association, protect human rights defenders, and collaborate with governments, peers, trade unions, and civil society to drive meaningful change.
Some key takeaways:
- Global freedom declined for the 19th year in a row: For the past 19 years, countries with declines have consistently outnumbered those with improvements. In 2024, political rights and civil liberties worsened in 60 countries, while 34 saw improvements. El Salvador, Haiti, Kuwait and Tunisia had the largest declines, while Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Syria had the biggest gains. Freedom House finds that 40% of the world’s population live in countries ranked as “Not Free,” 40% live in “Partly Free” countries and 20% live in “Free” countries. In 2024, 42% of the global population saw a decline in freedom, while only 15% experienced improvements. Furthermore, elections around the world were heavily impacted by violence and authoritarian tactics to limit voter choices. Violence occurred in 27 out of 66 countries holding national elections — more than 40% of countries. These countries saw candidates face assassination attempts or assaults, polling stations attacked or post-election protests violently suppressed. In authoritarian countries, elections were manipulated to block opposition candidates from running.
- Conflict increased instability and impeded democratic progress: In 2024, global conflicts —including civil wars, interstate clashes, and violence from militias, mercenaries and criminal groups — worsened instability and hindered democratic progress. These conflicts undermined security and fundamental rights, impacting both safety and freedoms. By the end of the year, 20% of countries and territories scored zero out of four for physical security and freedom from illegitimate force. Conflicts not only harmed local populations but also posed threats to democratic nations. For example, conflict fuels illicit trades, supports criminal organisations, enables terrorism and create opportunities for authoritarian regimes to seize territory from or destroy democratic governments.
- The road ahead for democracy: Freedom House identifies three key issues expected to shape global freedom in 2025 and beyond. First, countries with new leaders from contested elections or after the fall of authoritarian regimes (like Senegal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh) could advance democratic progress, depending on how these leaders handle reforms and protect individual freedoms and the rule of law. Second, in some democracies (like Slovakia and Mexico) elected leaders are attempting to weaken institutions that check their power, like the media, anti-corruption bodies and the judiciary. This could erode political rights and civil liberties in the near term and long term. Finally, in countries facing extreme violence from non-state armed groups (like Sudan, Haiti and Honduras), conflict is undermining safety and freedom, supporting authoritarian interests and impacting prospects for democracy. At the same time, positive developments in 2024 highlighted the potential for democratic progress, with competitive elections or the fall of authoritarian regimes bringing new opportunities for democratic governments. These governments now face the challenge of building strong democratic institutions while protecting individual rights. Freedom House underscores that efforts to strengthen democratic institutions, protect human rights, promote peace and support human rights defenders will be needed. Coordinated action between different stakeholders is essential to reversing the decline in global freedom and ensuring more countries benefit from democracy.
