South Africa vs Sweden: Share of women in parliament
South Africa
44.9%
in 2025
Sweden
45.0%
in 2025
South Africa rank
16th
Sweden rank
15th
Share of women in parliament over time
- South Africa
- Sweden
How they compare
Sweden currently reports 45.0% against 44.9% in South Africa, a difference of 0.1%.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 29 shared years of data; in 1997 it was Sweden ahead.
South Africa ranks 16th and Sweden ranks 15th of 193 countries.
Sweden has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 27.9% | 41.2% | 13.2% | Sweden |
| 2000s | 32.8% | 45.4% | 12.6% | Sweden |
| 2010s | 42.8% | 44.8% | 2.0% | Sweden |
| 2020s | 45.9% | 46.4% | 0.5% | Sweden |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of women in parliament, South Africa or Sweden?
- Sweden, at 45.0% against 44.9% in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in share of women in parliament between South Africa and Sweden?
- 0.1%, with Sweden ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Sweden?
- 29 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2025.
- How do South Africa and Sweden rank globally for share of women in parliament?
- South Africa ranks 16th and Sweden ranks 15th of 193 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, via World Bank (2026) β processed by Our World in Data, published as Share of women in parliament. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Percentage of seats in lower or single chamber of the legislature held by women.