10 Most Prosperous Countries from Legatum Index

As a Canadian business we like to stay on top of global rankings that include our great country and I’ve delved into this in posts like the best country to live, smartest countries, the happiest countries, the  most peaceful countries, the friendliest countries, the most charitable countries, the best countries for quality of life, the best countries for business, the top countries for life expectancy, the best countries for working women, the best country for child well-being, the best countries from social progress, the best countries for higher education, the most popular countries, the least corrupt countries, the countries with the best reputation, the best countries for ease of doing business, the best countries for starting a business, the best country for business, the best country for customer satisfaction, the most gay positive country, the best countries with the most competitive economies, the best countries for entrepreneurship, the most sustainable countries, the best countries to grow old, the best country brand, the most youthful cities, the best cities to live for opportunity, the best countries for business, the most sustainable countries and the most charitable countries. Today I’m adding the latest 10 most prosperous countries in the world according to the Legatum Prosperity Index.

I featured this important Index last year as it “offers the only global assessment of national prosperity based on both wealth and wellbeing. The Prosperity Index incorporates 142 countries, which cover 96% of the world’s population and 99% of global GDP.” The scores from the Legatum Prosperity Index are based on eight sub-indices: social capital, personal freedom, safety & security, health, education, governance, entrepreneurship & opportunity and economy. All sub-indices have equal value. “The average of the eight sub-indices yields a country’s overall prosperity score. The overall Prosperity Index rankings are based on this score.” Based on this methodology, the 10 most prosperous countries in the world are:

1. Norway – Norway has been ranked first on this index since 2009. Norway’s best ranking was first place in economy and its worst was twelfth in governance.
2. Switzerland – Switzerland moved up seven places from ninth place last year. Its best ranking was first in governance and its worst was twenty-seventh in education.
3. Canada – Canada moved up three places from 2012 to earn its third place finish. The best ranking Canada received was first in personal freedom and the worst was sixteenth in entrepreneurship & opportunity.
4. Sweden – Sweden fell one spot from third place last year. Sweden’s best ranking was first in entrepreneurship & opportunity and its worst ranking was fourteenth in education.
5. New Zealand – New Zealand was able to maintain its place on the list from last year with its best ranking being first in education and its worst ranking was twentieth in health.
6. Denmark – Denmark dropped four spots from its second place finish in 2012. Its best ranking was second in entrepreneurship & opportunity while its worst ranking score was twenty-third in economy.
7. Australia – Australia fell from fourth last year to seventh this year with its best ranking being second in education and its worst ranking was seventeenth in health.
8. Finland – Finland dropped one spot from seventh in 2012 to eighth in 2013. Its best ranking was third in entrepreneurship & opportunity while its worst ranking was twenty-sixth in economy.
9. Netherlands – Netherlands dropped one spot from eighth in 2012 to ninth in 2013 with a best ranking of fifth in social capital and a worst ranking of twentieth in economy.
10. Luxembourg – Luxembourg moved up one spot from eleventh to being in the top ten this year. Its best ranking was first in health while its worst ranking was forty-sixth in education.

When looking at the Americas every country’s Prosperity Index score has improved and although the US didn’t break the top ten they did manage to move up one spot to eleventh place. In fact, the outlook of the ranking was good as there were increases “in overall global prosperity and this year for the first time every sub-index has increased its score compared with 2009.”

The Legatum Prosperity Index illustrates that despite lingering uncertainties in the global economy countries are thriving and continuing to gain strength. Congrats to Canada for moving up three spots.

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Miratel Solutions is a Toronto call centre, eBusiness, and letter shop mail house specializing in professional fundraising services including inbound telephone fundraising, outbound telephone fundraising, online fundraising, lottery fundraising services, donation processing and receipting and direct mail fundraising services. We are committed to our CSR business values in all our business decisions  and advancing the missions of the nonprofits we proudly serve.