🇰🇵North Korea Political Stability: 3.3/100
North Korea scores 3.3 out of 100 on the Political Stability Index, rated "Fragile" based on World Bank 2023 Worldwide Governance Indicators across six governance dimensions.
Composite score is the unweighted average of six governance dimensions, each measured on a 0-100 percentile scale.
North Korea occupies the northern part of the Korean Peninsula, covering an area of 120,540 square kilometers. The country is predominantly mountainous, with 80% of its terrain consisting of mountains and uplands, including the highest peak, Paektu Mountain, at 2,744 meters. The climate is humid continental, with cold winters and hot, humid summers, where most precipitation occurs from June to September.
North Korea has a population of approximately 25 million people. The official language is Korean, and the country is predominantly ethnically homogeneous, with a strong emphasis on Korean cultural identity.
Governance Indicators
Governance Profile: North Korea
World Bank governance: rule of law 1st percentile, corruption control 0th percentile, political stability 18th percentile.
North Korea's strongest governance dimension is Political Stability at 18/100, placing it in the bottom quartile globally. This reflects a relatively low likelihood of politically motivated violence or instability.
The weakest dimension is Control of Corruption at 0/100. Corruption remains a significant governance challenge, potentially affecting everyday interactions with government institutions.
A moderate spread of 18 points separates the strongest and weakest indicators. This suggests governance strengths in some areas but room for improvement in others. Travelers can generally rely on institutional frameworks, though certain aspects of governance may be less dependable.
North Korea's fragile governance environment presents real challenges for travelers. Institutional capacity is severely limited across most dimensions. Visitors should expect minimal government services, potential interactions with corruption, and limited recourse through legal systems. Travel to North Korea requires extensive preparation and risk awareness.
The U.S. State Department currently rates North Korea as Level 4 (Do Not Travel). Elevated advisory levels combined with governance data paint a fuller picture of conditions on the ground that travelers should consider.
AS Governance Comparison
Top governance performers in AS based on the corruption composite ranking (weighted: 60% corruption control, 25% rule of law, 15% government effectiveness).
| Country | Score |
|---|---|
| 🇸🇬Singapore | 94.7 |
| 🇭🇰Hong Kong | 86.6 |
| 🇯🇵Japan | 83.7 |
| 🇦🇪United Arab Emirates | 77.1 |
| 🇧🇳Brunei | 76.1 |
| 🇰🇵North Korea | 0.5 |
Common Questions About North Korea's Political Stability
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More North Korea Data
Safety ratings, regional breakdown, and entry requirements.
Not Free — 3/100 on the Freedom House index.
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Read the full advisory on travel.state.gov.
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On-demand country risk PDFs from 6 government sources.