Taiwan ranks 21st in global Prosperity Index

2015/11/06

Taiwan moved up one place to 21st in the latest global Prosperity Index released Nov. 2 by London-based public policy group Legatum Institute.

The nation came sixth in the Asia-Pacific region, trailing New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong, in that order, but ahead of South Korea at 28th.

According to the report, the most prosperous country in the world is Norway, followed by Switzerland, Denmark, New Zealand, Sweden, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, Finland and Ireland.

Of the index’s eight equally weighted categories, Taiwan performed strongest in safety and security, ranking as the world’s sixth safest country amid global trends of increasing tension, violence and displacement.

This marks Taiwan’s best ranking in the subindex since 2011. Key factors contributing to its excellent performance include above-average scores for demographic stability, freedom of expression without fear, and low incidence of crime, the report said.

In the other categories evaluated by the institute, the nation finished 20th in economy, 21st in entrepreneurship and opportunity, 22nd in both education and social capital, 23rd in health, 31st in personal freedom and 36th in governance.

Taiwan saw noticeable improvements in the areas of entrepreneurship, health and social capital, which can be attributed to the country’s robust infrastructure development, world-class public health insurance system and high levels of community interaction, according to the data.

The annual index, now in its eighth edition, ranks 142 nations and territories—representing more than 96 percent of the global population and 99 percent of the gross world product—by assessing material wealth and citizens’ sense of well-being.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=238566&ctNode=2194&mp=9)