Human Freedom Index: Top 10 countries with the highest and lowest scores—unveiling India’s standing globally 

Source: The Cato Institute

Please note: As the concept of liberty has witnessed several debates, the notion of freedom according to the report is “a social concept that recognizes the dignity of individuals and is defined by the absence of coercive constraint.”

Bottom 10 countries with the lowest Human Freedom Index Score (2023-24)

Over the past two decades, global freedom has decreased significantly, with many jurisdictions experiencing declines, resulting in the world’s freedom distribution being unequal, with only 13.8% of the population in the top quartile and 37.6% in the bottom half.

China, with its large population, contributes to this disparity, ranking in the lowest freedom quartile of the index, while countries like Nicaragua, Syria, Hong Kong, Egypt, Turkey, and Hungary have seen the most significant declines.

Rebel fighters sit on a vehicle, after seizing Damascus and ousting Bashar al-Assad. (Reuters)

On the contrary, the lowest levels of human freedom were in the Middle Eastern and North African, sub-Saharan African, and South Asian countries, largely owing to the ongoing wars or political unrest, leading to humanitarian crises and severe limitations on personal and political freedoms, with widespread human rights violations.