Governance at a glance
- Government
- Federal presidential republic
- UN member
- Yes
- Independent
- Yes
- CPI score (2026)
- 9/100
- Press freedom (2025)
- 51.6/100 #109
- Electoral democracy (2025)
- 0.133
- HDI
- 0.388
- Regional blocs
- AU
Government and leaders
- Government type
- Federal presidential republic
| Title | Name |
|---|---|
| President of Republic of South Sudan | Salva Kiir Mayardit |
| Vice President of South Sudan | Riek Machar |
Safety and security
- Homicide rate (2012)
- 14.0/100k
- Traffic deaths (2019)
- 36.7/100k
- Military spending (2024)
- 2.0% of GDP
Corruption perceptions index
- CPI score (2026)
- 9 / 100
- Interpretation
- High corruption
Democracy index
- Electoral (2025)
- 0.133
- Liberal
- 0.064
- Participatory
- 0.047
- Deliberative
- 0.038
- Egalitarian
- 0.032
Press freedom index
- Overall score (2025)
- 51.6 / 100
- Global rank
- #109 / 180
- Rank change
- +27 vs previous year
- RSF zone
- Afrique
- Political #129
- 36.1
- Economic #89
- 41.8
- Legal #107
- 55.3
- Social #108
- 55.0
- Safety #104
- 69.9
Press freedom historical data
| Year | Score | Rank | Political | Economic | Legal | Social | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 51.6 | 109 | 36.1 | 41.8 | 55.3 | 55.0 | 69.9 |
| 2024 | 42.6 | 136 | 31.3 | 43.8 | 52.0 | 48.2 | 37.5 |
| 2023 | 50.6 | 118 | 49.5 | 48.3 | 56.1 | 47.7 | 51.5 |
| 2022 | 47.1 | 128 | 40.5 | 36.7 | 52.1 | 50.6 | 55.4 |
| 2021 | 54.2 | 139 | - | - | - | - | 69.6 |
| 2020 | 55.5 | 138 | - | - | - | - | 83.9 |
| 2019 | 54.4 | 139 | - | - | - | - | 100.0 |
| 2018 | 53.1 | 144 | - | - | - | - | 54.0 |
| 2017 | 51.8 | 145 | - | - | - | - | 53.8 |
| 2016 | 55.1 | 140 | - | - | - | - | 39.6 |
| 2015 | 62.0 | 125 | - | - | - | - | 71.7 |
| 2014 | 64.0 | 119 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2013 | 63.8 | 124 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2012 | 41.3 | 111 | - | - | - | - | - |