Why do some countries appear better able to implement sanctions than others? TRACER approaches this question through institutional capacity: the legal, administrative, and corporate systems that support sanctions compliance and enforcement.

Institutional capacity is not measured through a single indicator. The TRACER framework is guided by several strands of literature, which identify mechanisms through which compliance is shaped at multiple levels: country, organizations, and individuals.  While these mechanisms provide the conceptual basis for indicators selection, the index is operationally organized into pillars representing distinct dimensions of country-level capacity. Three of the pillars are part of the institutional capacity index, while the fourth is introduced at the next stage.

Institutional Capacity Across Countries (2022–2024)

The ranking below compares institutional capacity across all countries included in the TRACER framework.

The chart shows the TRACER Institutional Capacity Index for all countries included in the study. Higher scores indicate stronger overall institutional capacity, reflecting more robust legal frameworks, stronger enforcement institutions, and more developed corporate compliance systems. Because the index is standardized and based on principal component analysis (PCA), scores represent relative positions within the sample rather than compliance with a fixed benchmark. The results reveal a gradual spectrum of institutional capacity across countries rather than a clear divide between high- and low-capacity jurisdictions.

The Institutional Capacity Index represents the first stage of the TRACER analytical framework. To understand how institutional capacity interacts with structural trade exposure and observed trade diversion outcomes, readers are encouraged to explore the full methodology report. The report explains the construction of the index, the underlying indicators, data sources, aggregation methods, and the relationship between institutional capacity, predicted trade diversion, and excessive trade diversion across countries.

The TRACER Data Report documents the practical and analytical steps taken to develop a composite index evaluating national-level compliance (or lack thereof) with export restrictions against Russia, taking into account institutional capabilities and structural constraints.