GUYANA has moved up three places in ranking on the Rule of Law Index to 73 of 113 countries.

This is according to a release from the World Justice Project (WJP) which this week released the 2017-2018 WJP Rule of Law Index which measures rule of law adherence in 113 countries worldwide based on more than 110,000 household and 3,000 expert surveys.

Guyana climbed three positions for overall rule of law performance, from 76 in the 2016 to number 73 out of 113 countries for the 2017-2018 edition of the index.

Featuring primary data, the WJP Rule of Law Index measures countries’ rule of law performance across eight factors. These include constraints on government powers, absence of corruption, open government, fundamental rights, order and security, regulatory enforcement, civil justice, and criminal justice.

Guyana ranks at number 20 out of 30 countries in the Latin America and Caribbean region, and came in at 25 out of 36 among upper-middle income countries.
“Significant trends included an improvement in criminal justice,” the WJP noted.

The top three overall performers in the 2017-2018 WJP Rule of Law Index were Denmark, followed by Norway and Finland. Those nations which ranked at the bottom of the rating were Afghanistan (111), Cambodia (112), and Venezuela (113).

Globally, a majority of countries saw their scores decline since the publication of the last index in October 2016 in several areas, including human rights, checks on government powers, and civil and criminal justice.

Regionally, Latin America and the Caribbean’s top performer in the Index is Uruguay, ranked 22 out of 113 countries, followed by Costa Rica and Chile.

The WJP said Suriname showed the biggest fall in rankings, moving down 10 places to 69 of the global index. Three countries in the region experienced negative factor trends in constraints on government powers, while three countries showed positive factor trends in open government. Significantly, the WJP said Venezuela once again had the lowest overall rule-of-law score among all 113 indexed countries.

The WJP Rule of Law Index is the world’s leading source for original data on the rule of law.

The Index relies on more than 110,000 household and 3,000 expert surveys to measure how the rule of law is experienced and perceived in practical, everyday situations by the general public worldwide.

Performance is measured using 44 indicators across eight primary, rules of law factors, each of which is scored and ranked globally and against regional and income peers.

“Effective rule of law is the foundation for communities of equity, opportunity, and peace,” said William H. Neukom, WJP founder and CEO.

“No country has achieved a perfect realisation of the rule of law. The WJP Rule of Law Index is intended to be a first step in setting benchmarks, informing reforms, stimulating programs, and deepening appreciation and understanding for the foundational importance of the rule of law,” he said.