South Africa has slipped four places from fifth position to ninth on the 2009 Index of African Governance largely due lower scores in the areas of respect for civil and political rights and the rule of law.

The Index of African Governance, produced at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, ranks all 53 African countries according to their ability to provide good governance for their inhabitants.

Mauritius, the Seychelles, Cape Verde and Botswana are the four best governed countries this year, while Tunisia, Ghana, Algeria, Namibia, South Africa, and Sao Tome and Principe round out the top ten best overall performers.

The bottom ten countries are Guinea, Zimbabwe, Angola, Eritrea, the Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Congo (Kinshasa), Chad, the Sudan, and Somalia.

Elsewhere in southern Africa, Lesotho is 23rd, Comoros 25th, Mozambique 31st. Swaziland is 42nd, down from 34th in 2008.

Nigeria is 38th, having moved up slightly since last year. In Central and East Africa, Malawi is 14th, Tanzania 20th, Zambia 24th, Rwanda 26th, Kenya 27th, and Uganda 28th.

The Index measures governance according to service delivery across five major categories of analysis: Safety and Security; Rule of Law, Transparency and Corruption; Participation and Human Rights; Sustainable Economic Opportunity; and Human Development.