Nations in Transit

About the Survey

Nations in Transit is the only comprehensive, comparative, and multidimensional study of reform in the former Communist states of Europe and Eurasia. Nations in Transit tracks the reform record of 29 countries and administrative areas and provides Freedom House's most in-depth data about this vast and important region. The 2007 edition covers events from January 1 through December 31, 2006. It is an updated edition of surveys published in 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 1999-2000, 1998, 1997, and 1995.

The country reports in Nations in Transit follow an essay format that allowed the report authors to provide a broad analysis of the progress of democratic change in their country of expertise. Freedom House provided them with guidelines for ratings and a checklist of questions covering seven categories: electoral process; civil society; independent media; national democratic governance; local democratic governance; judicial framework and independence; and corruption.

Numeric ratings accompanying the reports are based on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 representing the highest and 7 the lowest level of democratic progress. The ratings for all categories reflect the consensus of Freedom House, the Nations in Transit advisers, and the report authors.  Nations in Transit is an independent assessment with a methodology rooted in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It measures trans-Atlantic-agreed standards of democratic governance.

Our Impact

The Nations in Transit series has monitored the state of democracy from Central Europe to Eurasia and pinpointed for policymakers, researchers, journalists, and democracy advocates alike the greatest reform challenges and reform opportunities facing the countries and territories that make up this vast geographic space.

Tangible outcomes of the survey include:

• Nations in Transit is being used as a benchmark for democracy promotion efforts.
• Nations in Transit results trigger national governments to reform.
• Nations in Transit generates in-country and international discussion about the state of democratic governance in a given country or region.

In addition, the series has identified multi-year trends including: a widening democracy divide across the region, the precariousness of energy rich and democracy poor states, and proof that transition is a continual process: backsliding in consolidated democracies.

The findings have been disseminated widely in North America, in the European Union, and across the European Neighborhood. The survey also holds cross-regional appeal and has enjoyed media coverage and requests for information from citizens of the Maghreb, Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Notable Reviews

"Nations in Transit is an indispensable source; very well researched and reliable."

-Michael Emerson, Centre for European Policy Studies, Brussels

"Since its beginnings, Nations in Transit has not only been a balanced and comprehensive survey of the political situation in Central and Eastern European countries and the former Soviet Union, but it has also managed to shape political discourse in the region, and occasionally even provided a well-needed impetus for change."

-Istvan Szent-Ivanyi, Hungarian Member of European Parliament, Brussels

“As post-Communist political experiences further diversify with every passing year, the value of Nations in Transit only grows.  Its incisive, objective country surveys cut to the heart of complex political realities, greatly aiding comparative analysis by scholars and policy makers alike."

-Thomas Carothers, vice president, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington, D.C.