Civil society organizations offer a mechanism for public participation in decision-making, as part of a broader effort toward empowering communities. This global indicator from Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) assesses whether there is a diverse array of civil society organizations (not primarily state-sponsored) that members of the public can voluntarily participate in. This is relevant to understand the ability of individuals to seek out organizations through which to advocate for change. However, this does not mean that everyone does participate, nor does it give an indication of how effective or influential these organizations are in policymaking. In 2022, 83% of countries met the threshold of having many diverse civil society organizations. This is a slight increase from 2021, but a drop from 87% in 2020.  

Civil society organizations offer a mechanism for public participation in decision-making, as part of a broader effort toward empowering communities. This global indicator from Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) assesses whether there is a diverse array of civil society organizations (not primarily state-sponsored) that members of the public can voluntarily participate in. This is relevant to understand the ability of individuals to seek out organizations through which to advocate for change. However, this does not mean that everyone does participate, nor does it give an indication of how effective or influential these organizations are in policymaking. In 2022, 83% of countries met the threshold of having many diverse civil society organizations. This is a slight increase from 2021, but a drop from 87% in 2020.