When deciding on a destination, there are dozens of factors that can influence your choice. Is it affordable? Is it accessible? Does it have interesting activities? Something else which is a consideration is whether or not the country is safe.
The Institute of Economics and Peace (IEP) analyzed 163 countries for its annual Global Peace Index (GPI) that measures the safety of nations around the world. Amongst the determinants were the level of societal safety and security, the extent of ongoing domestic and international conflict, and the degree of militarization.
The countries were then given a score ranging from 1 (most peaceful) to 5 (least peaceful). Here are the top three.
Iceland—1.1
The Nordic nation topped the ranking for the 13th year in a row. Not sharing borders with another country has played a role in Iceland having some of the lowest military spending and international conflict rates in the world. The country also has the lowest incarceration rate in Europe.
New Zealand—1.253
The land of the long white cloud not only managed to remain relatively safe from the COVID-19 pandemic, it also has pretty much no domestic or international conflicts! Quality of life, education, protection of civil liberties, government transparency, and economic freedom also rank fairly high.
Denmark—1.256
An efficient government is responsible for Denmark’s high-ranking. In addition, it reports low levels of corruption, equitable distribution of resources, and women are noticeably more satisfied with their own standards of living than men.