Botswana has been ranked 30th on the Global Peace Index 2019 – one place above last year. The Global Peace Index (GPI) 2019 report finds that the average level of global peacefulness improved very slightly in the 2019 GPI. This is the first time the index has improved in five years. The average country score improved by -0.09 per cent, with 86 countries improving, and 76 recording deteriorations. Over the last ten years, the average level of global peacefulness has deteriorated by 3.78%.

Iceland remains the most peaceful country in the world, a position it has held since 2008. Other countries in the top five are New Zealand, Portugal, Austria and Denmark. Bhutan has recorded the largest improvement of any country in the top 20, rising 43 places in the last 12 years.

Afghanistan is now the least peaceful country in the world, replacing Syria, which is now the second least peaceful. South Sudan, Yemen, and Iraq comprise the remaining five least peaceful countries. This is the first year since the inception of the index that Yemen has been ranked amongst the five least peaceful countries.

The Middle East and North Africa region remained the world’s least peaceful region. It is home to four of the ten least peaceful countries in the world, with no country from the region ranked higher than 30th on the GPI. Europe remains the most peaceful region in the world.

Ukraine (-0.197), Sudan (-0.176), Egypt (-0.136), North Macedonia (-0.127) and Rwanda (-0.125) showed the largest improvements in peace in the 2019 Global Peace Index. Top five countries with the largest deteriorations in peace are Nicaragua (+0.377), Burkina Faso (+0.153), Zimbabwe (+0.123), Iran (+0.123), and Brazil (+0.112).

Top gainers in ranking are Rwanda (+24), North Macedonia (+23), Jordan (+20), Indonesia (+14), and Greece (+14). Top losers are Nicaragua (-54), Burkina Faso (-26), Sierra Leone (-18), Namibia (-18), and Morocco (-13).

The GPI covers 99.7% of the world’s population, using 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators from highly respected sources, and measures the state of peace using three thematic domains: the level of Societal Safety and Security; the extent of Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict; and the degree of Militarisation.

Botswana, ranked 30th most peaceful country in the world, ahead of Spain (30), Italy (39), The UK (45), France (60), Greece (65), South Africa (127) and the US (128).

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Source: statisticstimes.com