What we can learn from the ‘best place’

What we can learn from the ‘best place’

NORWAY

 has beaten us again — it’s been ranked the top country to live in by the United Nations Development Program.

Some Aussies might find it hard to believe that a country with scarcely a barbecue, beach or 40C day could be the gold medallist — for the 12th straight year.

While others (who are not so keen on some aspects of Australia) might be surprised that we took out silver — beating the likes of Switzerland and Denmark. How on earth did Australia beat several European counties, with their almost free education, generous paternity leave for new dads and lengthy bicycle paths?

Well, it’s not exactly all about bicycle paths. The UNDP uses the Human Development Index — a statistic factoring education, per-capita income and life expectancy — to determine a country’s rank.

Australia scored 0.935 on a scale of 0 to 1, where 1 is the highest score possible. At 0.944, Norway’s margin over Australia was incredibly slim.

Niger, the country ranked the lowest, scored 0.348. Countries with the steepest HDI drops included Syria, which slipped 15 places, and Libya, which dropped 27 places.

“Norway has over time managed to increase its income, and at the same time, ensured that incomes are relatively evenly distributed,” Jens Wandel, who runs the program’s administrative department, toldThe Loca