Freedom in Central America
7 countries and territories, on every statistic this site carries. Each row shows the region’s best and worst on that measure and the median between them.
Countries in Central America
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | Costa Rica 0.915 | Nicaragua 0.018 | 0.826 | 6 |
| Freedom of association | Costa Rica 0.922 | Nicaragua 0.042 | 0.853 | 6 |
| Civil liberties | Costa Rica 0.931 | Nicaragua 0.077 | 0.793 | 6 |
| Freedom from political violence | Costa Rica 0.964 | Nicaragua 0.059 | 0.724 | 6 |
| Equal protection of rights | Costa Rica 0.917 | El Salvador 0.197 | 0.431 | 6 |
| Academic freedom | Honduras 0.931 | Nicaragua 0.019 | 0.825 | 6 |
| Media censorship effort | Guatemala 1.727 | Nicaragua -2.207 | 0.881 | 6 |
| Harassment of journalists | Costa Rica 1.773 | Nicaragua -3.327 | 0.486 | 6 |
| Media self-censorship | Guatemala 1.830 | Nicaragua -2.780 | 0.849 | 6 |
| Universal right to vote | Belize 1.000 | El Salvador 1.000 | 1.000 | 7 |
| Legal rights for women | Costa Rica 91.9 | Guatemala 73.8 | 82.5 | 7 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | Belize 1.000 | El Salvador 1.000 | 1.000 | 7 |
| Access to justice for women | Costa Rica 1.000 | El Salvador 0.000 | 0.000 | 6 |
| Access to justice for men | Costa Rica 1.000 | El Salvador 0.000 | 0.000 | 6 |
| Civil liberties score | Belize 53.0 | Nicaragua 12.0 | 29.0 | 7 |
| Political rights score | Costa Rica 38.0 | Nicaragua 2.0 | 21.0 | 7 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | Nicaragua 96.5% | Guatemala 46.5% | 88.2% | 5 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | Panama 7.2% | El Salvador 21.8% | 13.5% | 5 |
| Government spending as a share of GDP | Guatemala 13.5% | Costa Rica 28.6% | 22.1% | 4 |
| Foreign investment inflows | Costa Rica 5.4% | Belize 0.0% | 2.1% | 5 |
| Regulatory quality | Costa Rica 64.0 | Nicaragua 39.2 | 50.0 | 7 |
| GDP per capita | Panama $37.5K | Honduras $6,726 | $12.8K | 7 |
| GDP growth | Nicaragua 4.9% | Belize 2.7% | 4.3% | 7 |
| Inflation | Honduras 4.6% | Panama -0.2% | 1.1% | 7 |
| Unemployment | Guatemala 2.6% | Belize 8.9% | 5.0% | 7 |
| Income inequality | Panama 48.900 | El Salvador 39.800 | 46.700 | 5 |
| Extreme poverty | Costa Rica 1.5% | Honduras 17.0% | 4.6% | 5 |
| Government debt | El Salvador 107.3% | El Salvador 107.3% | 107.3% | 1 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | Costa Rica 87.2% | Honduras 58.6% | 66.5% | 7 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | Costa Rica 23.3 | Honduras 4.6 | 5.8 | 5 |
| Mobile subscriptions | El Salvador 176.5 | Honduras 70.9 | 112.5 | 5 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | Costa Rica 0.862 | Nicaragua 0.151 | 0.574 | 6 |
| Liberal democracy | Costa Rica 0.809 | Nicaragua 0.019 | 0.452 | 6 |
| Rule of law | Costa Rica 0.935 | Nicaragua 0.008 | 0.609 | 6 |
| Judicial checks on government | Guatemala 0.954 | Nicaragua 0.003 | 0.758 | 6 |
| Legislative checks on government | Costa Rica 0.956 | Nicaragua 0.026 | 0.652 | 6 |
| Political corruption | Costa Rica 0.206 | Nicaragua 0.942 | 0.649 | 6 |
| Civil society participation | Costa Rica 0.883 | Nicaragua 0.114 | 0.693 | 6 |
| Women’s political empowerment | Costa Rica 0.907 | Nicaragua 0.531 | 0.732 | 6 |
| Voice and accountability | Costa Rica 74.6 | Nicaragua 26.8 | 48.6 | 7 |
| Control of corruption | Costa Rica 61.6 | Nicaragua 18.9 | 36.2 | 7 |
| Government effectiveness | Costa Rica 56.9 | Nicaragua 30.9 | 47.8 | 7 |
| Political stability | Costa Rica 86.0 | Honduras 56.2 | 66.0 | 7 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | Panama 0.839 | Honduras 0.645 | 0.706 | 7 |
| Life expectancy | Costa Rica 81.0 | El Salvador 72.3 | 73.7 | 7 |
| Adult literacy | Panama 96.2% | Guatemala 82.1% | 89.0% | 4 |
| Secondary school enrolment | Costa Rica 121.8% | Guatemala 49.6% | 62.1% | 5 |
| Government spending on education | Costa Rica 5.3% | Panama 2.5% | 3.2% | 7 |
| Health spending | El Salvador 9.3% | Belize 4.1% | 7.7% | 7 |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | Costa Rica 24.1% | Guatemala 57.2% | 37.6% | 7 |
| Maternal mortality | Costa Rica 24.0 | Guatemala 94.0 | 47.0 | 7 |
| Women in parliament | Nicaragua 54.9% | Belize 12.5% | 29.7% | 7 |
| Women in the workforce | Panama 54.9% | Guatemala 38.3% | 46.5% | 7 |
| Fertility rate | Honduras 2.48 | Costa Rica 1.32 | 2.11 | 7 |
| Urban population | Costa Rica 79.7% | Belize 41.6% | 59.4% | 7 |
| Refugees who left | Costa Rica 6.2 | El Salvador 1,132.3 | 197.3 | 7 |
| Population | Guatemala 18.7M | Belize 422.9K | 6.4M | 7 |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | Nicaragua 0.83 | Panama 2.74 | 1.14 | 7 |
| Renewable energy use | Guatemala 62.1% | El Salvador 21.9% | 34.2% | 7 |
| Access to electricity | Costa Rica 99.8% | Nicaragua 88.7% | 96.0% | 7 |
Overlapping regions
These groupings share countries with Central America. A country can belong to several at once — Turkey is in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Mediterranean.