Bulgaria’s economy ranks 93rd in the world
Bulgaria’s economy ranks 93rd in the world, showed a recently released survey of the London-based Legatum Institute. Six years ago, the Institute launched the ranking of the happiest countries in the world, using the term ‘prosperity’ in order to avoid the subjective nuance of the word ‘happiness’. The 2012 Legatum Prosperity Index benchmarks 142 countries, covering 96% of the world population, producing 99% of the global gross domestic product (GDP). The inquiry is profound and is aimed at giving a better picture of economic success than the currently used criteria such as GDP. Each country is assessed on the basis of 89 variables falling into eight categories: Economy, Entrepreneurship & Opportunity, Governance, Education, Health, Safety & Security, Personal Freedom, and Social Capital.
Scandinavian countries prosper most, with Norway, Denmark and Sweden topping the overall Index (first, second and third). Where is Bulgaria’s place in the prosperity index? Our country occupies the 48th position, climbing one place, compared to 2009 and registering no change from 2011. Bulgaria’s position in the middle of the ranking is mainly due to the relatively few barriers to starting a new business in the country and the relatively good personal security of Bulgarians, compared to Asia and Latin America. Bulgaria ranks 41st in these two auxiliary indices but lags behind in the other six, occupying the 49th place in terms of health care, 51st in terms of education and 59th in terms of personal freedom. With regard to the other auxiliary indices, Bulgaria is among the other countries which lag behind, occupying the 72nd position in terms of governance and the 85th in terms of social capital. Bulgaria’s economy occupies the unenviable 93rd position in the global ranking.
Text and photo: www.klassa.bg
(01.11.2012)