🇸🇦Saudi Arabia Political Stability: 43.8/100
Saudi Arabia scores 43.8 out of 100 on the Political Stability Index, rated "Moderate" 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.
Saudi Arabia occupies about 80% of the Arabian Peninsula, making it the largest country in the Middle East. The geography is dominated by the Arabian Desert, with the Rub' al Khali being the world's largest sand desert. The country features a central plateau, mountain ranges, and a narrow coastal plain along the Red Sea, with a desert climate characterized by extremely high summer temperatures and low annual rainfall.
Saudi Arabia has a population of approximately 35 million people, with a significant proportion being foreign workers. The official language is Arabic, and Islam is the predominant religion, shaping the cultural and social landscape of the country.
Governance Indicators
Governance Profile: Saudi Arabia
World Bank governance: rule of law 54th percentile, corruption control 61st percentile, political stability 24th percentile.
Saudi Arabia's strongest governance dimension is Government Effectiveness at 63/100, placing it in the upper half globally. This points to comparatively high-quality public services and credible policy implementation.
The weakest dimension is Voice & Accountability at 5/100. Limited voice and accountability suggests constraints on citizen participation, expression, or media freedom.
A wide 57-point gap between the highest and lowest indicators signals deeply uneven governance. Strong performance in Government Effectiveness contrasts sharply with weakness in Voice & Accountability. This kind of imbalance often means that day-to-day experiences can vary dramatically depending on which government functions are involved.
Saudi Arabia's moderate governance scores suggest travelers should prepare for some institutional inconsistency. Public services may be unreliable in certain areas, and regulatory enforcement can be uneven. Travel insurance and advance planning are recommended.
The U.S. State Department currently rates Saudi Arabia as Level 3 (Reconsider 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 |
| 🇸🇦Saudi Arabia | 59.5 |
Common Questions About Saudi Arabia's Political Stability
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More Saudi Arabia Data
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