DO THE WORLD’S POOR LIVE IN ‘FREE’ SOCIETIES?

20 01 10

Note: This exercise was intended as a ‘thought experiment’ and should be taken with the usual
caveats on data and categorizations of ‘poverty’ and politically ‘free’ societies.

We took Freedom House’s (2011) definitions (direct quotes):

- A ‘free’ country is one where there is open political competition, a climate of respect for
civil liberties, significant independent civic life, and independent media.

- A ‘partly free’ country is one in which there is limited respect for political rights and civil
liberties. ‘Partly free’ states frequently suffer from an environment of corruption, weak
rule of law, ethnic and religious strife, and a political landscape in which a single party
enjoys dominance despite a certain degree of pluralism.

- A ‘not free’ country is one where basic political rights are absent, and basic civil liberties
are widely and systematically denied.

We found, using US$1.25/day data that:

- 43% of global poor population live in ‘free’ countries (but if you remove India, only 9%
of the world’s poor live in free societies);

- 31% of global poor population live in ‘partly free’ countries;

- 26% of global poor population live in ‘not free’ countries (but if you remove China, only
10% of the poor live in ‘not free’ countries).

% of global poor living in:

- Low income country (LIC) Free 1%

- LIC Partly Free 18%

- LIC Not Free 6%

- Middle Income Country (MIC) Free (incl. India) 42% (without India 34%)

- MIC Partly Free 13%

- MIC Not Free (incl. China) 20% (without China 16%)

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Table 1. Poverty (US$1.25) and Political Freedom (Freedom House data)

Key:
Free
Partly Free
Not Free

Country Number of poor % of world poor Current status of political Trends in political freedoms
(millions, US$1.25) freedom (free/not free) (positive or negative)
Low income countries
Afghanistan … … Not Free Negative
Bangladesh 76009780 5.73 Partly Free
Benin 3482610 0.26 Free
Burkina Faso 7267350 0.55 Partly Free
Burundi 6183160 0.47 Partly Free Negative
Cambodia 3701280 0.28 Not Free Negative
C.A.R. 2471440 0.19 Partly Free
Chad 5801280 0.44 Not Free
Comoros 271100 0.020 Partly Free
D.R.C. 36005640 2.71 Not Free
Eritrea … … Not Free
Ethiopia 29147620 2.2 Not Free Negative
Gambia, The 493230 0.037 Partly Free
Ghana 6715760 0.51 Free
Guinea 6220500 0.47 Partly Free Positive
Guinea-Bissau 668250 0.050 Partly Free Negative
Haiti 4832290 0.36 Partly Free Negative
Kenya 7063070 0.53 Partly Free Positive
Korea, D.R. … … Not Free
Kyrgyz, Rep. 179030 0.013 Partly Free Positive
Lao P.D.R. 2461370 0.19 Not Free
Liberia 3034220 0.23 Partly Free
Madagascar 11947750 0.90 Partly Free Negative
Malawi 9806760 0.74 Partly Free
Mali 6232340 0.47 Free
Mauritania 550950 0.042 Not Free
Mozambique 14776390 1.11 Partly Free
Myanmar … … Not Free
Nepal 14703780 1.11 Partly Free
Niger 8631550 0.65 Partly Free
Rwanda 6092490 0.46 Not Free Negative
Sierra Leone 2525750 0.19 Partly Free
Somalia … … Not Free

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Tajikistan 1386810 0.10 Not Free
Tanzania 30213040 2.28 Partly Free Positive
Togo 2376850 0.18 Partly Free
Uganda 14788730 1.11 Partly Free
Zambia 7375530 0.56 Partly Free Negative
Zimbabwe … … Not Free

Middle income countries

Albania 62210 0.0047 Partly Free
Algeria … … Not Free
American Samoa … … …
Angola 7755210 0.58 Not Free
Argentina 1325670 0.1 Free
Armenia 112140 0.0084 Partly Free
Azerbaijan 167840 0.013 Not Free
Belarus 194040 0.015 Not Free
Belize … … Free
Bhutan 161450 0.012 Partly Free
Bolivia 1129610 0.085 Partly Free
Bosnia and H. 75570 0.0057 Partly Free
Botswana … … Free
Brazil 9905250 0.75 Free
Bulgaria 156460 0.012 Free
Cameroon 5329160 0.40 Not Free
Cape Verde 91880 0.0069 Free
Chile 329350 0.025 Free
China 207559260 15.64 Not Free
Colombia 6997090 0.53 Partly Free Positive
Congo, Rep. 1848410 0.14 Not Free
Costa Rica 89180 0.0067 Free
Cote d’Ivoire 4218670 0.32 Not Free Negative
Cuba … … Not Free
Djibouti 143730 0.011 Not Free Negative
Dominica … … Free
Dominican Republic 434350 0.033 Free
Ecuador 625730 0.047 Partly Free
Egypt 1543090 0.12 Not Free Negative
El Salvador 392660 0.03 Free
Fiji … … Partly Free Negative
Gabon 66270 0.005 Not Free
Georgia 600030 0.045 Partly Free Positive
Grenada … … Free
Guatemala 1524340 0.11 Partly Free
Guyana … … Free

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Honduras 1279140 0.096 Partly Free
India 455829820 34.35 Free
Indonesia 66052860 4.98 Free
Iran 1381740 0.10 Not Free Negative
Iraq … … Not Free
Jamaica 52760 0.004 Free
Jordan 110750 0.0084 Not Free
Kazakhstan 309680 0.023 Not Free
Kiribati … … Free
Kosovo … … Partly Free
Latvia 45520 0.0035 Free Negative
Lebanon … … Partly Free
Lesotho 849790 0.064 Partly Free
Libya … … Not Free
Lithuania 68710 0.0052 Free
Macedonia 40760 0.0031 Partly Free
Malaysia 503480 0.038 Partly Free
Maldives … … Partly Free
Marshall Islands … … Free
Mauritius … … Free
Mayotte … … …
Mexico 4200840 0.32 Partly Free Negative
Micronesia … … Free
Moldova 87290 0.0066 Partly Free Positive
Mongolia 59160 0.0044 Free
Montenegro 12420 0.00090 Free
Morocco 780600 0.059 Partly Free
Namibia … … Free
Nicaragua 862470 0.065 Partly Free
Nigeria 88591830 6.68 Partly Free Positive
Pakistan 35188890 2.65 Partly Free
Palau … … Free
Panama 311660 0.024 Free
Papua New Guinea … … Partly Free
Paraguay 395170 0.03 Partly Free
Peru 2192300 0.17 Free
Philippines 19701820 1.48 Partly Free Positive
Poland 763310 0.057 Free
Romania 430940 0.032 Free
Russia 2842000 0.21 Not Free
Samoa … … Free
Sao Tome and Principe 40560 0.0031 Free
Senegal 3779230 0.28 Partly Free
Serbia 147000 0.011 Free

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Seychelles 1700 0.00015 Partly Free
Solomon Islands … … Partly Free
South Africa 11528000 0.87 Free
Sri Lanka 2639480 0.2 Partly Free Negative
St Kitts and Nevis … … …
St Lucia … … …
St Vincent + Grenadines … … … Positive
Sudan … … Not Free
Suriname … … Free
Swaziland 686570 0.052 Not Free Negative
Syrian Arab Republic … … Not Free
Thailand 1305570 0.098 Partly Free Negative
Timor-Leste 395750 0.03 …
Tonga … … Partly Free Positive
Tunisia 243870 0.018 Not Free
Turkey 1852660 0.14 Partly Free
Turkmenistan … … Not Free
Tuvalu … … Free
Ukraine 925160 0.07 Partly Free Negative
Uruguay 66480 0.005 Free
Uzbekistan 11832730 0.89 Not Free
Vanuatu … … Free
Venezuela 954190 0.072 Partly Free Negative
Vietnam 18047340 1.36 Not Free
West Bank and Gaza … … …
Yemen 3685450 0.28 Not Free
Sources: World Development Indicators and Freedom House.

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