Israel is the eight safest country in the world and “best country” to live in the Middle East, according to latest data.

Israel has been a defender of Judeo-Christian values in the Middle East. As a consequence, Israel has improved its protection and respect for women’s rights -something that many of their neighbouring countries may appear to lack – becoming the best country for women in the Middle East.

The Global Wealth Migration Review by New World Wealth reports the best countries for women in the world.

The 10 safest countries for woman worldwide during the past year (2017) were:

  1. Australia
  2. Malta
  3. Iceland
  4. New Zealand
  5. Canada
  6. Poland
  7. Monaco
  8. Israel
  9. USA
  10. South Korea

 

The safest countries in each region were:

  • Europe: Malta, Poland, Monaco, Iceland.
  • Asia Pacific: Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Japan, South Korea.
  • Middle East: Israel, UAE.
  • Africa: Mauritius, Botswana, Namibia.
  • Americas: USA, Canada

This is important for market researchers because there is a positive correlation between wealth growth and women’s safety levels. That is, the more women’s safety improves, the more wealth grows. Additionally, women’s safety levels are used as a predictor of the performance of emerging markets, which may encourage developing countries to promote women’s protection.

This is also confirmed by other sources. A 2017 report by the World Economic Forum suggests that overall Israel is the best country for women in the Middle East. The report assesses the development and deployment of women, because, as they assert, it is important to know what countries are doing with half of their potential. The data is summarised in Table 1.

As it is evident, Israel outscores all of their neighbours, being placed 44th while the closest contestant is placed 120th (i.e. 76 places below). Yemen is the world’s last place. It is worth highlighting that Israel is first place in educational attainment.

Table 1- Best countries for women in the Middle East
Middle East Rank Country Global Rank Economic Participation & Opportunity Educational Attainment Health & Survival Political Empowerment
1 Israel 44(↑5) 65 1 98 47
2 UAE 120(↑4) 130 62 129 67
3 Bahrain 126(↑5) 120 75 136 137
4 Kuwait 129(↓1) 125 52 117 141
5 Qatar 130(↓11) 122 33 127 143
6 Turkey 131(↓1) 128 101 59 118
7 Egypt 134(↓2) 135 104 99 119
8 Jordan 135(↓1) 138 51 113 126
9 Lebanon 137(↓3) 133 109 109 142
10 Saudi Arabia 138(↑3) 142 96 130 124
11 Iran 140(↓1) 140 100 135 136
12 Syria 142(-) 144 110 1 130
13 Yemen 144(-) 141 141 119 144
Notes: The prior year differences is enclosed in parentheses.

 

CUFI applauds the effort by the government and the Israelis to make the country a better place for women, but also recognises the efforts of women committing themselves to succeed in a region where sadly women do not have the same rights.