Freedom in South America
12 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 South America
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | Uruguay 0.931 | Venezuela 0.148 | 0.767 | 12 |
| Freedom of association | Uruguay 0.902 | Venezuela 0.224 | 0.830 | 12 |
| Civil liberties | Uruguay 0.932 | Venezuela 0.307 | 0.813 | 12 |
| Freedom from political violence | Uruguay 0.977 | Venezuela 0.163 | 0.836 | 12 |
| Equal protection of rights | Chile 0.789 | Venezuela 0.177 | 0.624 | 12 |
| Academic freedom | Chile 0.918 | Venezuela 0.129 | 0.732 | 12 |
| Media censorship effort | Brazil 2.958 | Venezuela -2.041 | 1.081 | 12 |
| Harassment of journalists | Uruguay 2.597 | Venezuela -1.640 | 0.919 | 12 |
| Media self-censorship | Brazil 2.022 | Venezuela -1.684 | 1.171 | 12 |
| Universal right to vote | Argentina 1.000 | Venezuela 1.000 | 1.000 | 12 |
| Legal rights for women | Peru 95.0 | Suriname 76.9 | 85.9 | 12 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | Argentina 1.000 | Suriname 0.000 | 1.000 | 12 |
| Access to justice for women | Chile 1.000 | Venezuela 0.000 | 0.000 | 12 |
| Access to justice for men | Chile 1.000 | Venezuela 0.000 | 0.000 | 12 |
| Civil liberties score | Chile 57.0 | Venezuela 13.0 | 41.0 | 12 |
| Political rights score | Uruguay 40.0 | Venezuela 0.0 | 30.0 | 12 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | Paraguay 76.5% | Venezuela 25.0% | 49.7% | 9 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | Argentina 10.4% | Chile 18.3% | 15.3% | 6 |
| Government spending as a share of GDP | Paraguay 18.9% | Uruguay 36.5% | 28.5% | 6 |
| Foreign investment inflows | Suriname 45.1% | Argentina 0.5% | 2.5% | 10 |
| Regulatory quality | Chile 67.2 | Venezuela 24.8 | 50.7 | 12 |
| GDP per capita | Guyana $83.7K | Bolivia $11K | $19.4K | 11 |
| GDP growth | Guyana 19.3% | Bolivia -1.6% | 2.6% | 12 |
| Inflation | Bolivia 19.5% | Ecuador 0.7% | 4.4% | 10 |
| Unemployment | Bolivia 3.0% | Guyana 12.0% | 6.6% | 12 |
| Income inequality | Colombia 54.600 | Peru 40.700 | 43.300 | 8 |
| Extreme poverty | Uruguay 0.2% | Colombia 8.6% | 3.3% | 8 |
| Government debt | Brazil 81.9% | Uruguay 65.3% | 71.2% | 3 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | Chile 95.6% | Venezuela 76.7% | 82.0% | 11 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | Uruguay 33.0 | Peru 11.7 | 18.0 | 10 |
| Mobile subscriptions | Colombia 174.1 | Venezuela 71.0 | 128.6 | 10 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | Uruguay 0.862 | Venezuela 0.181 | 0.673 | 12 |
| Liberal democracy | Uruguay 0.790 | Venezuela 0.042 | 0.515 | 12 |
| Rule of law | Chile 0.951 | Venezuela 0.009 | 0.585 | 12 |
| Judicial checks on government | Brazil 0.954 | Venezuela 0.017 | 0.680 | 12 |
| Legislative checks on government | Chile 0.976 | Venezuela 0.040 | 0.723 | 12 |
| Political corruption | Uruguay 0.055 | Venezuela 0.968 | 0.465 | 12 |
| Civil society participation | Brazil 0.865 | Venezuela 0.380 | 0.772 | 12 |
| Women’s political empowerment | Chile 0.913 | Paraguay 0.669 | 0.814 | 12 |
| Voice and accountability | Uruguay 78.3 | Venezuela 25.0 | 57.6 | 12 |
| Control of corruption | Uruguay 78.8 | Venezuela 15.7 | 39.9 | 12 |
| Government effectiveness | Chile 70.1 | Venezuela 22.8 | 47.3 | 12 |
| Political stability | Uruguay 87.7 | Venezuela 36.2 | 60.0 | 12 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | Chile 0.878 | Venezuela 0.709 | 0.782 | 12 |
| Life expectancy | Chile 81.4 | Bolivia 68.7 | 76.8 | 12 |
| Adult literacy | Uruguay 98.9% | Ecuador 93.5% | 94.9% | 7 |
| Secondary school enrolment | Peru 108.3% | Paraguay 79.1% | 97.8% | 7 |
| Government spending on education | Bolivia 7.9% | Suriname 2.9% | 4.2% | 7 |
| Health spending | Argentina 10.3% | Guyana 2.5% | 7.9% | 12 |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | Colombia 14.6% | Paraguay 36.3% | 26.7% | 12 |
| Maternal mortality | Chile 10.0 | Venezuela 227.0 | 58.5 | 12 |
| Women in parliament | Bolivia 50.8% | Brazil 18.1% | 32.8% | 12 |
| Women in the workforce | Bolivia 72.9% | Venezuela 37.1% | 52.7% | 12 |
| Fertility rate | Bolivia 2.52 | Chile 1.14 | 1.89 | 12 |
| Urban population | Uruguay 95.7% | Guyana 26.5% | 82.2% | 12 |
| Refugees who left | Argentina 1.0 | Venezuela 1,303.2 | 13.4 | 12 |
| Population | Brazil 212.8M | Suriname 639.9K | 19.1M | 12 |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | Paraguay 1.16 | Guyana 4.56 | 2.61 | 12 |
| Renewable energy use | Paraguay 58.8% | Argentina 9.2% | 27.0% | 12 |
| Access to electricity | Uruguay 100.0% | Guyana 93.0% | 99.0% | 12 |
Overlapping regions
These groupings share countries with South America. A country can belong to several at once — Turkey is in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Mediterranean.