Mauritius has been ranked in the top 20 of the world’s most peaceful countries in the 2018 Global Peace Index (GPI). In the 12th edition of the Index, Mauritius was ranked number 20 out of 163 countries. On the continent Botswana came second, and ranked 29 globally. Sierra Leone was ranked (35), Madagascar (38), Ghana (41), Namibia (43), Malawi (44), and Zambia (48) respectively on the Global Index.
Free from internal and external conflict, Mauritius and Botswana are indeed a model for peace and stability.
Of the five countries with the largest improvements in peace, four are from sub-Saharan Africa, including the Gambia and Liberia, which had the largest overall improvements in peacefulness.
According to the index, the single largest country improvement occurred in The Gambia, “where improvements in political instability, perceptions of criminality, and relations with neighbouring countries saw it improve 35 places in the rankings, moving up to76th”. “The election of the new president Adama Barrow lay behind the improvements in political stability and the Gambia’s relations with neighbouring countries”.
Liberia had the second largest overall improvement in peace of any country, moving up 27 places in the rankings.
Iceland was ranked as the world’s most peaceful country, a position it has held since 2008 joined at the top of the index by New Zealand, Austria, Portugal, and Denmark. Syria was ranked as the world’s least peaceful country, followed from the bottom by South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.