(MENAFN- The Peninsula)
Doha: Qatar has been ranked the 29th most peaceful country in the world out of 163 countries by the Global Peace Index. This year’s edition sees Qatar rise two places from last year, becoming the most peaceful country in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region ahead of Kuwait (36), the United Arab Emirates (52), and Oman (73).
According to the index, Iceland, New Zealand, Denmark, Portugal, and Slovenia were the top five ranked most peaceful countries.
According to the 2021 index, 87 countries were more peaceful this year than in 2020, while 73 countries were less peaceful in 2021 than 2020.
Though the Mena region had the largest regional improvement, it remains the least peaceful in the world.
Europe remained the most peaceful region. Due to the increase in violent demonstrations, North America had the largest regional deterioration. Afghanistan remains the least peaceful country.
The average level of global country peacefulness has deteriorated by 0.07%, the ninth deterioration in the last 13 years.
The index stated that over 5,000 pandemic-related incidents were recorded from January 2020 to April 2021. Violence ranged from violent demonstrations and riots in response to lockdown measures to targeted physical assaults. Violence cost the world $14.96 trillion PPP in 2020, equivalent to 11.6 percent of global GDP, or $1,942 per person.
The GPI is developed by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP), an independent, non-partisan, non-profit think. IEP’s headquarter is in Sydney, with offices in New York, The Hague, Mexico City, Harare, and Brussels.
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