State Weakness in the Developing World

Brookings just released a report, called the Index of State Weakness in the Developing World, that attempts to quantify the vulnerability of 141 developing countries. The index ranks and assesses these countries according to their performance in four critical spheres: economic, political, security, and social welfare. Within these categories, the report utilizes 20 indicators to evaluate in more detail states’ strength/weakness, from GDP growth to rule of law to human rights abuse to undernourishment. One of the stronger relationships that the report identifies is that the most critically weak states tend to be the poorest as well. It follows then that the bottom quintile of countries is dominated by Sub-Saharan Africa while the top quintile features many Eastern European and Latin American states. To read the full PDF of the report, click here.

Hat tip: World Bank Private Sector Development Blog