Astana, 28 October. Kazakhstan ranked 41st out of 143 on the “Order and Security” factor of the 2026 Rule of Law Index, but slipped from 66th to 67th place overall as its overall score fell by 1.4% to 0.53, according to the country press release of the US-based World Justice Project (WJP).
Kazakhstan in the WJP 2026 index
- 67 of 143
overall rank (66th in 2025) - 0.53
overall score, −1.4% year on year - 41
order and security - 40
civil justice - 98
fundamental rights - 102
constraints on government powers
Source: World Justice Project
- 67 of 143
The 41st place was reported by the Kazinform agency on the evening of 28 October, which described it as entering the top 50 for public safety. WJP itself published the index on 21 October. “Order and Security” is one of the eight factors that make up the index: it covers crime, the threat of terrorism and armed conflict, political violence and how often people settle disputes by force. Kazakhstan rose one place on this measure: it was 42nd in the 2025 index.
The picture on the other seven factors is uneven. Kazakhstan does best on civil justice — 40th in the world and first among the 15 countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia — and is also second in the region on regulatory enforcement (58th globally). It does worst on constraints on government powers (102nd) and fundamental rights (98th). It is 67th on absence of corruption, 80th on open government and 69th on criminal justice.
WJP writes that over the year Kazakhstan saw declines in freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of assembly and association, and civic participation, while judicial limits on government power weakened; at the same time civil justice became more accessible and affordable. Among the region’s 15 countries Kazakhstan fell from fifth to sixth place. Ahead are Georgia (55th in the world), Montenegro and Kosovo; at the bottom of the regional list are Belarus, Turkey and Russia, which is 121st globally. Uzbekistan is 79th overall but 15th in the world and first in the region on order and security. Tajikistan and Turkmenistan are not included in the index.
The index is built on surveys: in 2026 WJP polled more than 215,000 residents of different countries and some 3,400 lawyers and experts. Worldwide, the rule of law weakened in 62% of countries and improved in 38%; according to WJP, declines have outnumbered improvements for the ninth year in a row. The top places go to Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Luxembourg, the bottom ones to Venezuela, Afghanistan, Haiti, Cambodia and Nicaragua.
What it means: By WJP’s assessment Kazakhstan’s streets are safe — on that measure the country is in the top third of the world. But the rule of law is broader than security, and across all eight factors Kazakhstan slipped one place in a year: citizens’ rights and the courts’ independence from the executive weakened.
Background: The World Justice Project is an independent organisation based in Washington; it has published the Rule of Law Index every year since 2009, rating countries on a scale from 0 to 1, where 1 means the strongest adherence to the rule of law.
