Bulgaria ranked 46th out of 110 in global Prosperity Index

The Legatum Institute, part of an investment fund of the same name head quartered in Dubai, has published at the end of last year its Prosperity Index – an annual ranking of the well-being of countries worldwide. The index is based on 79 different variables grouped into 9 sub-indexes, such as wealth, economic growth, personal well being, and quality of life. The fourth edition of the analysis with a volume of 320 pages encompasses 110 countries where 90 per cent of the world’s population lives. In the 2010 Prosperity Index, Bulgaria ranks in the first half of the chart – at position 46, having moved one position forward compared to 2009, when it was rated 47th.
The prosperity of a nation does not mean only its material well being, but also the quality of life of its citizens, experts point out. Prospering nations enjoy not only economic freedom and growth but also political freedom and good governance, high-quality healthcare and education. All these factors create the necessary conditions for entrepreneurship and satisfaction of citizens.
In the 2010 index, Bulgaria rates 46th out of 110 countries in the world. Scandinavian countries continue to be the most prospering nations globally. Norway tops the chart, followed by Finland and Denmark. In the top ten countries, we can also see Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the USA. African countries can be found at the bottom of the chart. Among the developed European countries, Germany rates 15th and France 19th. China with its fast-developing economy takes 40th position. Among Balkan countries, Bulgaria is second only to Greece, which ranks at 39th position, Romania is at 48th place and Turkey – at 69th.
Where does Bulgaria stand in terms of the different assessment criteria?
On the variable of economic development, macroeconomic politics, and efficacy of financial institutions Bulgaria rates 75th. It is 55th on the variable of entrepreneurship, innovation, and business start-up costs. Regarding the third factor called Effective and lawful governance and free elections, Bulgaria takes 57th position. Bulgaria ranks 48th in terms of education, its quality and the access to it, and 45th regarding the level of its healthcare system. In terms of security, both national and personal, Bulgaria ranks 40th. The last factor of Social Capital, including social relations and networks, cohesion in society, etc, Bulgaria ranks at the unenviable 80th position, which comes to show once again a typical feature of Bulgarians – their individualism.
The Legatum Prosperity Index report contains a profile for each country, with Bulgaria’s page saying that the country is seriously lagging behind the rest of the EU countries and public confidence is rather low. There is very serious support for entrepreneurship but the population is rather pessimistically minded.
A notable fact is the good educational level in Bulgaria where 95 per cent of school-age children are enrolled in primary school. Yet, Bulgarian citizens are dissatisfied with the quality of education and healthcare in their country, the analysis indicates. Bulgaria rates pretty well in terms of national and personal security as well as in terms of tolerance although Bulgarians experience some restriction over their freedom of speech and civic choice. And at the end, the analysis points to the low level of participation in social life of Bulgarians. Despite the relatively good position of Bulgaria in the Legatum Institute Prosperity Index, a survey conducted by Manpower, an international consultant and HR company, shows that one in every seven Bulgarians would readily emigrate to seek a better-paid job. This makes more than 1 million people out of a 7.5 million population. Bulgaria is still one of the three EU member states with the lowest income per capita.