Sub-Saharan Africa vs Sweden: Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments
Sub-Saharan Africa
27.0%
in 2025
Sweden
45.0%
in 2025
Sub-Saharan Africa rank
17th
Sweden rank
15th
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments over time
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Sweden
How they compare
Sweden currently reports 45.0% against 27.0% in Sub-Saharan Africa, a difference of 18.0%.
That makes Sweden's figure about 1.7 times Sub-Saharan Africa's.
Across all 28 years both countries report, Sweden has been ahead every year.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 17th and Sweden ranks 15th of 47 groups.
Sweden has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Sub-Saharan Africa | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.6% | 40.4% | 29.8% | Sweden |
| 2000s | 15.2% | 45.4% | 30.2% | Sweden |
| 2010s | 22.5% | 44.8% | 22.3% | Sweden |
| 2020s | 26.3% | 46.4% | 20.1% | Sweden |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments, Sub-Saharan Africa or Sweden?
- Sweden, at 45.0% against 27.0% in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments between Sub-Saharan Africa and Sweden?
- 18.0%, with Sweden ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Sub-Saharan Africa and Sweden?
- 28 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2025.
- How do Sub-Saharan Africa and Sweden rank globally for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 17th and Sweden ranks 15th of 47 groups.
- Where does this data come from?
- Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), published as Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Women in parliaments are the percentage of parliamentary seats in a single or lower chamber held by women.