Egypt, Libya plummet in Africa governance index

Egypt’s overall ranking in the annual report on good governance in Africa has declined. Both Egypt and Libya have experienced a rapid decline whereas the Ivory Coast experienced an improvement.

Sudan-born Mo Ibrahim, the founder of the Ibrahim Index for Good Governance in Africa, said that governance in Africa has rapidly improved over the course of the last five years despite the decline of some key states.

The index revealed that Mauritania still holds the top rank among the 52 states mentioned while Somalia remains at the bottom.

Egypt and Libya, which have both experienced recent revolutions, have declined in their classifications for good governance; whereas, Tunisia remains relatively stable in comparison.

Egypt has experienced the largest decline in governance over the last five years, falling eight points in its score of 51.1 out of 100 possible points. It dropped 14 places and ranked number 26. Its neighbour Libya experienced a decrease of 7.4 points, achieving 42.1 points. Libya dropped 16 spots and now ranks at number 43.

The Ivory Coast had the best improvement in governance over the last five years by rising 7.8 points for a total score of 43 and climbed six spots to occupy rank number 40 on the index.