GDP growth during the crisis, the state of the economy, the increase in the average wage are the factors that have allowed some countries to maintain leadership positions in terms of the quality of life of the population. At the end of 2016, which countries became more comfortable for life, which left the TOP-10 and which still remain dream countries? About this - in our article!

A good country is a healthy country. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN and the World Bank, the TOP-10 states with the healthiest population looks like this:

Iceland. Its superiority is due to the maximum number of health workers (more than 3.6 per 1 thousand population), the minimum number of people diagnosed with tuberculosis (only 2 per 1 thousand people) and the highest life expectancy in the world (over 72 years for men and 74 for women).
Singapore. The minimum number of people suffering from obesity (1.8%) and high life expectancy (average - 82 years) allowed this city-state to take a high place in the ranking.
Sweden. A small number of tuberculosis patients (only 3 per 1,000 people), coupled with a minimal infant mortality rate, allowed her to take an honorable 2nd place.
Germany. More than 11% of the state's GDP goes to healthcare (Germany spends more than 3,500 euros annually on the treatment of citizens).
Switzerland. The high place in the rating is due to the large number of doctors (3.6 per 1 thousand people)
Andorra. Health spending in Andorra is more than 8% of GDP, and average duration life of the population exceeds 82 years.
United Kingdom. This country is the only state in the West, which owns 95% of medical facilities operating on its territory. More than 9.8% of GDP is spent on healthcare.
Finland. In this country, about 300 people a year fall ill with tuberculosis, while 30 thousand people are diagnosed with cancer every year (over 75% of patients are completely cured).
Netherlands. The country has a low incidence of tuberculosis (5.4 people per 1 thousand inhabitants) and sufficient life expectancy - more than 81 years.
Canada. The Medicare healthcare system is the pride of this North American state, because it guarantees almost free medical care to every inhabitant. Health expenditures account for over 10% of GDP, and the life expectancy of citizens exceeds 80 years.

The worst countries in terms of the health of citizens are African states: Swaziland, Somalia, South Sudan, Chad, the Central African Republic, Mali, etc. The rating is based on data from researchers at the University of Seattle and the Bloomberg news agency.

WHO uses a special indicator to determine the quality of health care - life expectancy at birth. According to the rating of the World Health Organization, Russia ranks 110th in terms of medical care. And although the healthcare system leaves much to be desired, the Russian Federation is ahead of other CIS countries, such as Kazakhstan (111th place), Tajikistan (115th), Armenia (116th), Uzbekistan (117th), Ukraine (151st), losing only to the Republic of Belarus (98th place) .

TOP 10 countries ideal for business

A strong economy is unthinkable without a successful business. The Forbes edition in 2016 compiled a list of countries that are most convenient for doing business. It is noteworthy that out of 10 participants in the rating, 6 are EU countries:

Sweden;
New Zealand;
Hong Kong;
Ireland;
United Kingdom;
Denmark;
Netherlands;
Finland;
Norway;
Canada.

The American edition has been forming the rating for 11 years, taking into account the level of bureaucracy, taxes, corruption, economic growth, financial and personal freedom of citizens - a total of 11 factors were taken into account. For 7 of them, Sweden was in the top ten, because its economy grew by 4.2 percent at the end of the year with a GDP of 493 billion US dollars. The data for the assessment was obtained from the reports of the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, the non-governmental international anti-corruption organization Transparency International, etc.

In terms of the level of economic development, Russia took 40th place, and in terms of the complexity of starting a business, it was in 26th position. In terms of the availability of electricity, the Russian Federation became 30th, in terms of the availability of loans it became 44th, in terms of taxation - 45th, in terms of the complexity of obtaining construction rights, our country became 115th. According to the World Bank, the ideal country for doing business (without considering additional criteria, such as economic growth) is New Zealand, because in it "paying taxes is as easy as writing a check."

The most prosperous countries in the world

Well, where we do not? The British non-profit organization The Legatum Institute has published a world ranking study of the most prosperous countries in the world. The most "prosperous" countries are determined taking into account economic and social indicators, business opportunities, the level of education and health care, social capital and personal freedoms of citizens. Experts evaluated 149 countries, giving them scores in the range of 0 - 10 on 89 criteria.

Based on the results of the analysis conducted in 2016, the following rating was compiled:

New Zealand (prosperity index - 79.28);
Norway (78.66);
Finland (78.56);
Switzerland (78.10);
Canada (77.67);
Australia (77.48);
Netherlands (77.44);
Sweden (77.43);
Denmark (77.37);
UK (77.18).

The purpose of the study is to study the public welfare of the states of the world on a global scale. The Prosperity Index is a composite indicator that measures the achievements of states in terms of well-being. In this list, Russia occupies 95th position (prosperity index - 54.73). The closest "neighbors" in the rating are Nepal and Moldova (94th and 96th places, respectively). Among the CIS countries, Russia has the best indicators: 25th place in terms of the quality of education, 56th in terms of safety environment, 69 - on entrepreneurship.

Russia's achievements are obvious - every year it moves to the top lines of the rating. At the same time, the results should be viewed through the prism of political sentiments: the report of the Legatum Institute repeatedly uses liberal clichés “Putin's Russia”, “Soviet heritage”, “communist past”, etc. When compiling the rating, the British organization uses survey data from the previous year, which does not allow a 100% objective reflection of reality.

Ranking of countries in the world in terms of living standards

The United Nations (UN) has been publishing a report on the quality of life of the population in various countries of the world since 1990. The rating is based on the Human Development Index, or Humanity Development Index (HDI). This index allows you to measure the achievements of states in the field of healthcare, incomes of the population, education, social services, etc.

The report was last published in 2015, and the best countries to live in were distributed in the UN rankings as follows:

Norway (0.94);
Australia (0.935);
Switzerland (0.93);
Denmark (0.923);
Netherlands (0.922);
Germany (0.916);
Ireland (0.916);
United States of America (0.916);
Canada (0.913);
New Zealand (0.913).

Russia is among the countries with a high human development index (0.798) on a par with Belarus. Our country is somewhat ahead of Oman, Romania, Uruguay, slightly yielding to Montenegro. The countries with the worst HDI index are located in Africa: Niger, CAR, Eritrea, Chad, Burundi, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Mozambique and Mali.

Denmark (201.53);
Switzerland (196.44);
Australia (196.40);
New Zealand (196.09);
Germany (189.87);
Austria (187);
Netherlands (186.46);
Spain (184.96);
Finland (183.98);
United States of America (181.91).

The index was calculated without the use of government data and official reports, so it can be considered subjective and depoliticized. For calculations, a formula was used that takes into account such factors as the purchasing power of the population, the ratio of the cost of real estate to the income of citizens, the safety and cost of living, the quality of healthcare, the climate, and even the situation on the roads (the less traffic jams, the better).

Russia ranks 55th in this list with a quality of life index of 86.53. It is somewhat ahead of Ukraine and slightly inferior to Egypt and Singapore. Russia showed good results in the field of real estate: the index of housing affordability is 13.3 (this is only a little more than that of Austria, France, Estonia, and South Korea). The purchasing power index of Russians is half that of citizens of the leading countries of the list - only 52.6. But the cost of living index in Russia is one of the lowest (35.62). For comparison: in Switzerland it is 125.67, in Norway - 104.26.

The table of indices that determine the position of the listed countries looks like this:

The country	Purchasing power index of citizens	Healthy security	The ratio of the cost of housing and income of the population
Denmark	135.24	78.21	6.33
Switzerland	153.90	69.93	9.27
Australia	137.26	74.14	7.54
New Zealand	108.61	72.17	6.80
Germany	136.14	76.02	7.23
Austria	103.54	78.80	10.37
Netherlands	120.12	69.19	6.47
Spain	94.80	76.55	8.70
Finland	123.42	74.80	7.99
United States	130.17	68.18	3.39

As well as high level living standards, relative affordability of housing, high purchasing power of citizens, the leading countries in terms of living standards are also the most expensive to live in. The ranking of the most expensive countries to live in looks like this:

Switzerland - 126.03;
Norway - 118.59;
Venezuela - 111.51;
Iceland - 102.14;
Denmark - 100.06;
Australia - 99.32;
New Zealand - 93.71;
Singapore - 93.61;
Kuwait - 92.97;
Great Britain - 92.19.

TOP-10 is based on data from the research company Movehub (UK). The index used (the Consumer Price Index, or CPI) takes into account the cost of food, utilities, transportation, gasoline and entertainment. Interesting fact: the index reflects the ratio of the cost of living in New York (if it is 80, then living in the country is cheaper than in the Big Apple by 20%).

The most affordable countries for life are mainly the countries of Asia and Africa: India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Egypt, Algeria. States of Europe and North America are still attractive, but quite expensive to live in. The attractiveness is due to the excellent quality of medical and educational services. The best universities in the world are located on their territory: Harvard, Princeton and Yale, Oxford and Cambridge universities.

Many leaders of the listed ratings are countries with excellent ecology. According to Forbes, Switzerland, Sweden and Norway are the top three cleanest and most livable countries in terms of climate and ecology. There are practically no harmful industries on their territory, and endless green meadows, mountains and the purest natural reservoirs make living and relaxing in them as beneficial to health as possible.

It should be noted that many states are absolute leaders that excelled in all indicators. So, Norway, Iceland and Sweden can be safely called ideal for living, working, and tourism. And which countries, in your opinion, have provided their citizens with optimal living conditions and the highest possible standard of living? personal experience and share your opinions in the comments!

We look forward to your feedback, reposts and comments, thank you.

At the moment, the standard of living in the countries of the world varies greatly. And the point here is not only in the development of the economic component of this or that state, but in the general prosperity of its population. We are talking about financial aspects, and educational, and political. The world ranking is influenced by dozens of factors of development of all segments of the population.

Standard of living

This characteristic demonstrates the degree of well-being of society. The standard of living in the countries of the world is an indicator of the satisfaction of the spiritual and financial needs of the population. This coefficient is calculated for a certain period: a quarter, a year, a five-year period, etc. The basic parameter is the average income per person, together with its ratio to

In addition, to calculate the standard of living in different countries, it is necessary to analyze the quality of healthcare, the state of the environment, the degree of psychological comfort of citizens, etc. This parameter illustrates the satisfaction of the population in material and spiritual needs in a specific period of time.

Additional indices in the calculation are birth rate, death rate, housing conditions, quality of education, employment and unemployment, prices for goods and services, transport infrastructure, social security, freedom of citizens, food supply, sanitary conditions, recreational system, life expectancy, etc. All these parameters are taken into account for all segments of the population.

Countries of Europe

This is significantly different from others in the degree of well-being of the population. The standard of living in general is much higher than in Asia, Africa or the Americas. The reason lies in the stable financial system and infrastructure development.

The demonstration that the standard of living in the countries of Europe is higher than anywhere else is better to start with Norway.

This small monarchy has a GDP of more than $335 billion. At the same time, the unemployment rate varies within only 3%. There are also high rates of literacy and social security. All this together allows Norway to lead the wealth ranking among all countries in the world.

Switzerland is second on the list. Here per capita accounts for about 80 thousand dollars. Switzerland is distinguished by a reliable service sector, a developed banking sector and a broad industrial sector.

Also in the top ten countries in the world with the best indicators of life and well-being are Sweden, Denmark, Finland and, oddly enough, Luxembourg.

CIS and Russia

This region has not been a role model for a long time in terms of economy and population development. Today, the standard of living in the CIS countries is far from ideal, and it is not for nothing that only one of them is in the top 50 in the world rankings. We are talking about Kazakhstan, which staked out 47th place. GDP per person is more than 24 thousand dollars. At the same time, the development of industry and healthcare, stability on the political front is noted.

All other CIS countries are noticeably lower than Belarus, this applies to Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and others. Russia is located on the 91st place in the list, behind Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan and Moldova.

Asian part of the world

The general standard of living in the countries of the world is assessed as satisfactory. In Asia, the average is above average. All thanks to several developed countries, the best of which is Singapore. It is this republic that is located in the wealth ranking above all Asian powers - in 18th place. GDP per capita here is more than 51 thousand dollars. In terms of population development and services, Singapore ranks 19th in the world.

The next in the ranking (19th line) is Hong Kong. According to the development index, this administrative Chinese region ranks 13th - the highest in Asia after Japan. GDP per person - more than 38 thousand dollars.

Taiwan is another administrative region of the PRC, which is distinguished by the level of well-being of the population. She closes 20 best countries world ranking in quality of life. A sharp jump in the development of all service sectors was observed after the recognition of the state by China.

Taiwan is followed by South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.

American continents

Canada is the leader in this area. In the world wealth ranking, it is in 3rd place, after Norway and Switzerland. Canada is considered one of the richest countries in the world in terms of GDP - more than 1.5 trillion dollars. The population development index is rated as very high. Canada has a stable financial system, which relies on the perfect work of banks, coupled with profitability from agriculture and industry.

The USA is based on the 11th line of the rating. Its level of GDP exceeds 16.7 trillion. dollars. In terms of government revenue, the United States is in first place. Another thing is that unemployment is thriving in the country, taxes are constantly being raised, and social rights are being limited.

Uruguay is the only Latin American state to be included in the top 30 countries in the world ranking, closing it. The common denominator of GDP and the population development index is assessed as good.

Rest of the world

The total standard of living in the countries of the world is declining due to the slow development of most African and oceanic states. New Zealand stands apart here. It is rather an exception to the rule.

New Zealand deservedly settled on the 5th place in the world ranking. In the island monarchy per capita is about 35.5 thousand dollars. According to the Human Development Index, the country ranks 6th in the world. The basis of the state economy is agriculture, heavy industry and tourism.

Closes Chad (142nd place). Here the standard of living is assessed as low. This also applies to the degree of development of the population, and the GDP indicator, and other important components of the comfort and well-being of citizens.

The standard of living of the population, or the level of well-being of the population, is a separate bar in meeting the financial and spiritual needs of the population of any country.

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Needs that are used a certain time of their use. Often, they use data on the consumer basket, that is, the ratio of its use by the population.

Initial Aspects

Non-material indicators also affect this indicator, therefore it is important to take into account, for example, the state of health of the population of citizens, or the environmental indications of the regions of the country, because the psychological indicator of the population depends on this, which is an important indicator.

That is, according to these indicators, you can see how satisfied citizens are with their material and spiritual condition, a certain period of time is taken into account. Often, the rules take a period of time for one year.

Evaluation criteria when compiling

To find out the standard of living in each country, different evaluation criteria are used. The human development index is based precisely on the sum of the incomes of the population.

At the top of the world are those countries that have the highest index. When compiling the calculation of the standard of living, the following criteria influence:

The income of residents, in this case, indicators are taken on the minimum wage, living wage, GDP growth.
The amount of income that residents spend on basic necessities is calculated, as well as given to buy food.
The level of medical care is taken into account, what is the price for the services of doctors, the properties of medicinal preparations, what is the attitude towards the elderly, what is the attitude towards people with disabilities, as well as to disabled citizens.
The state of health of citizens is an equally important factor - the average life expectancy of people, how many percent of the population have chronic diseases, alcohol-dependent percentage of the total population, from smoking, as well as drug addiction of part of the population.
The level of educated citizens, as well as how accessible education is at universities, and what is its quality.
Social support of the population, the effectiveness of the use of various social projects.
What is the cost of housing.
What is the unemployment rate.
Quality drinking water, its price, as well as the food product is estimated.
What about freedom of speech in the country, as well as its demographic choice, mass media.
The level of pollution in the country, as well as environmental indicators.
There is no discrimination.

Characteristics of states (table)

Top states by standard of living:

Switzerland	The Swiss, according to general statistics, for the second time occupy the first position of "the best countries in the world." It is best to create corporations, this is what the respondents say. In addition, Switzerland ranks second in terms of citizenship, taking into account important point, which shows that in this country the government with special respect for its residents, and the rights in the environment, the right to freedom of speech. Switzerland enjoys great success in the economy, as well as an open environment for doing business. As well as one of the best conditions for pensioners. The average salary of workers is 5 thousand euros per month. Ecological environment is one of the best in the world
Canada	The example of this country shows that there are still countries that care about the environment, as well as the social development of the country. Canada is also a leader among countries in terms of living standards. It should be taken into account that Canadians work only 1702 hours a year. Canada may also be famous for its Canadian oil reserves.
Germany	Germany occupies a leading position for entrepreneurs. Germany displaced the UK, and it moved to fourth place, because Germany is famous for its reputation, as well as its openness to citizens. The government also takes care of the health of its citizens, and allocates 11% of GDP for the treatment of the population.
United Kingdom	Experts highly appreciate education in the UK. This year, the UK has fallen one position, thereby letting Germany go ahead.
Japan	This country is open to entrepreneurs, and also has a high economy, as well as rich traditions. Its competitors may be Singapore, as well as China - which, in principle, occupy a leading position in terms of GDP per capita growth. These three countries show rapid growth in economic development
Sweden	According to the level of ecology, it occupies a leading place in the top 10. A survey was conducted in which the feedback from women was more positive, which can be said to be more comfortable for women in it. However, every year there are more and more migrants, which can affect the economic level and the general standard of living of the population.
Australia	Previously, this country was the one to which convicts were exiled, and this moment it has become one of the most developed. The government has created good conditions for families to live in it, study, and travel. What is also important is the fact that there are favorable conditions for pensioners, it is in the top 3 countries. Success factors - a small level of taxes with low wages - 8%, most citizens live on the coast of Australia, there is a warm and mild climate
USA	He can boast that he has a direct influence on the political government of many countries, as well as influence in military operations. Just as important is the fact that the United States is no longer considered to be such a politically balanced country, as well as a demographic one. Some analysts argue that this may be the reason for the election of a new president, Donald Trump, as well as his decisions about the US position in Syria regarding Jerusalem.
France	Included in the top 10 countries, and famous for its cultural influence, traditions, education, and France is still popular among tourists
Netherlands	One of the most modern countries in the world. Favorable conditions have been arranged for creating a family, giving birth and raising children. No gender discrimination

To date, these countries are in the top 10.

Main macroeconomic indicators

Macroeconomic indicators are determined by the aggregate of all households in the country per capita.

Macroeconomic indicators include:

Gross domestic product (GDP)	That is, the price of goods and services created to meet social needs
Household income in cash	Which contain the maximum amount of expenses of the population for final consumption without attracting their own money, income from the sale of assets and increasing their own liabilities
Primary income of resident households	Which contain wages for work, gross income, balance of property
Balance of current transfers, as the difference between transfers received and paid	Transfers received include pensions, allowances, scholarships, insurance compensations. Current transfers paid are income and property taxes, social security contributions, voluntary contributions, loan repayments.
Real disposable household income	Which are considered as the amount of available income, adjusted for the consumer price index

Situation in Russia

In the list of 142 countries of the world, Russia occupies 61st place, as recent studies show. If you look at the closest countries - neighbors, then Russia gave way to Belarus, which took 58th position, Greece 54th place, China 51st bar.

Rating for 2016 titled Quality of Life Index published by the portal Numbeo. Analysts assessed the quality of life in 56 countries around the world on a combination of the following indicators: the purchasing power of the population, the level of environmental pollution, the ratio of housing prices to income, the cost of living, security, health and climate.
AT different categories the winners were determined. So, Finland, Norway and Sweden became the best in terms of the most insignificant environmental pollution. The countries with the best climatic conditions were Portugal, Argentina and South Africa, with the lowest cost of living - India, Pakistan and Ukraine. In terms of security, South Korea, Singapore and Japan were in the lead. But the purchasing power of the population is highest in Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and Germany.
Interestingly, not all countries with a high quality of life have expensive housing. On the average apartment in Denmark, you can earn in 5.9 years. The best in this indicator were Saudi Arabia with a score of 2.78, South Africa with a score of 3.34 and the United States (3.37). But, the leader in the overall ranking, took only the 20th line (8.57) in terms of the ratio of housing costs to income.

TOP 10 best countries in terms of quality of life in 2016:

1. Switzerland
2. Denmark
3. New Zealand
4. Germany
5. Australia
6. Netherlands
7. Austria
8. Norway
9. Spain
10. Sweden

This year 149 countries entered. The authors compare countries according to 9 criteria: the level of economic development, the business environment, the effectiveness of public administration, the level of education, healthcare, security and personal freedom, as well as the criteria for the development of social capital and the ecological environment.

Despite such a modest place (96th), compared to previous years, Russia's position has improved. So, in 2017, the country took 99th place in the ranking, and 10 years ago, in 2007 - 108th place. Russia was overtaken this time by such countries as India, Turkey, El Salvador, Jordan, Nepal, Belarus and Guatemala. At the same time, Russia was ahead of, for example, Ukraine, Egypt and Tunisia in the ranking. Russia's immediate neighbors in the ranking are Rwanda (95th) and Kenya (97th). Norway tops the rankings, followed by New Zealand and Finland. The rating is closed by the Central African Republic (CAR) and Afghanistan.

Russia occupies the best position in terms of education - here it is in 22nd place. The biggest weakness is the system of state administration, in which Russia is already in 124th place, and the level of personal freedom - the country is six steps from the bottom of the ranking, in 143rd place. Worse than in Russia, the situation with personal freedom is only in Mauritania, Algeria, Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan and Egypt.

The leader in economic development this year was Iceland, the leader in terms of the development of the business environment - the United States. Finland took the first place in terms of the level of education and the system of public administration, and Singapore in terms of the level of healthcare development. most safe country Norway is recognized, and Slovenia is the most environmentally friendly. The highest levels of personal freedom and human capital are recorded in Canada and New Zealand, respectively.

A place in any rating depends on the evaluation criteria, so it is necessary to say that Russia is worse or better than someone with reservations, says Oleg Shibanov, professor of finance at NES. “In some ratings, for example, the rating of developed countries, which was done by Bloomberg, the emphasis is on the freedom of economic activity. In others - on the level of education and freedom of expression. According to them, the level of development can be very different, this must be borne in mind,” he explains.

So, for example, in the Doing Business rating, Russia ranks 31st, while in the Legatum Institute sub-rating, according to the business environment development criterion, it ranks 60th. And in the Freedom in the World ranking, which assesses the level of political and civil freedoms, Russia took 180th place in 2017.

“We need to take into account the effect of a low base. In previous years, there were gigantic geopolitical risks, it was scary that a war would break out. And after the meeting between Putin and Trump this year, there is still a feeling that it won’t get any worse,” Vladimir Rozhankovsky, an expert at the International Financial Center, says to LIFA.

According to him, Jordan and India are worthy countries, but the fact that Russia is lagging behind Guatemala is "a little shameful." “India, of course, is less developed than Russia, but it does not conflict with the West and there are no sanctions on it. Any business owner wants to calculate the risks. And the current risks are impossible to calculate. So, apparently, the non-conflict of the country in this rating more important,” he concludes.

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