Costa Rica vs Southern Africa: Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments
Costa Rica
49.1%
in 2026
Southern Africa
35.8%
in 2026
Costa Rica rank
8th
Southern Africa rank
6th
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments over time
- Costa Rica
- Southern Africa
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 49.1% against 35.8% in Southern Africa, a difference of 13.3%.
That makes Costa Rica's figure about 1.4 times Southern Africa's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 27 shared years of data; in 2000 it was Southern Africa ahead.
Costa Rica ranks 8th and Southern Africa ranks 6th of 210 countries.
Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | Southern Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 31.1% | 24.3% | 6.7% | Costa Rica |
| 2010s | 37.4% | 33.1% | 4.2% | Costa Rica |
| 2020s | 47.1% | 36.1% | 11.0% | Costa Rica |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments, Costa Rica or Southern Africa?
- Costa Rica, at 49.1% against 35.8% in Southern Africa as of 2026.
- What is the difference in proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments between Costa Rica and Southern Africa?
- 13.3%, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Southern Africa?
- 27 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2026.
- How do Costa Rica and Southern Africa rank globally for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments?
- Costa Rica ranks 8th and Southern Africa ranks 6th of 210 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (% of total number of seats). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.