The Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s 2026 Report on CAR

What follows was, in a sense, expected—and while it certainly won’t help boost tourism, it is worth stating nonetheless. According to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, the Central African Republic (CAR) has slipped further down the African governance rankings, scoring only 31.3 out of 100 points. Placing 50th out of 54 countries is hardly a cause for celebration. Furthermore, the erosion of fundamental freedoms is pushing the nation toward dictatorship. With a decadent, polygamous head of state—who has also been known to rig elections and bend the country’s institutions to his own whims—it is fair to say that in this nation, which is larger than France, the practice of democracy is little more than a charade.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s 2026 report, which focuses on the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG), has just been released, painting a bleak picture of the Central African Republic for the 2016–2025 period. The country ranks 50th out of 54 African states, with its overall score having dropped by 0.9 points over the last decade. In short, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s 2026 report identifies an advanced state of governance decay in the CAR. It is worth noting that this assessment covers nearly the entire duration of Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s time in power, as he took office in 2016. The report highlights a series of broken promises, noting that progress made in certain economic and social sectors has failed to offset the decline in public freedoms, political participation, and the proper functioning of state institutions. Moreover, the Central African Republic remains more than 80% dependent on external sources for all processed goods and imports. The decline is particularly significant regarding civic checks and balances, with a drop of 27.7 points. Freedom of association and assembly fell by 25 points over the same period, bringing their score to zero out of 100.
Political pluralism also saw a decline of 23.8 points, while institutional checks and balances fell by 23.7 points.
More broadly, security and the rule of law—taken as a whole—lost 3.7 points during the period under review.
In short, these figures highlight issues within the political sphere. They also point to the erratic functioning of the justice system, the erosion of institutional safeguards, and a lack of protection for the population.
However, there have been some improvements: the foundations for economic opportunity have risen by 6.7 points since 2016, reaching 34 out of 100. Human development has advanced by 3.6 points, standing at 29.4 out of 100.
Mobile communications have seen an increase of 29.3 points. Anti-corruption mechanisms gained 25 points, as did the indicator for the enforcement of the law.
Ultimately, ranking 50th out of 54 countries, the Central African Republic is among the five lowest-performing states on the continent according to the Ibrahim Index of African Governance. The 2026 report confirms that the sectoral improvements recorded since 2016 have not been sufficient to boost the country’s overall governance assessment.

Analysis by Antoinette KODROGUÉ | LNC
Style, fact-checking & editing by the "Chief"

For: FatimaLamineHebdo
Date: November 6, 2026
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