If you are looking for a country that is the best for raising a child, you should not consider the United States. It is not even on the Top 10 but on the 18th, according to the annual report of Best Countries.
Out of the 73 countries evaluated, seven European countries made it to the Top 10, with Denmark and Sweden occupying the first two slots.
Deidre McPhillips, a senior data editor at U.S. News & World Report, explained that these countries are hailed as such because of many incentives like generous paternal and maternal leave, and good over-all public education systems.
Meanwhile, the undesirable rank of the United States in the safety metric -- 32nd rank -- has a huge factor on why the country ranked at 18th, McPhillips also explained.
Other non-European countries on the list are as follows: Canada (4th), New Zealand (8th), and Australia (9th). The United Kingdom ranked at 11th.
The worst performing in Kazakhstan, followed by Lebanon and Guatemala.
Also not the best country
The "Best for Raising Children" is just a part of a variety of metrics that evaluate the performance of the 73 countries involved.
The said evaluation has nine sub rankings, namely Adventure, Citizenship, Cultural Influence, Entrepreneurship, Heritage, Movers, Open for Business, Power, and Quality of Life.
The US ranked 8th overall, with an overall score of 9.2.
The country leads the world in terms of political influences. However, it hit an abysmally low record of 16 out of a 100-point scale in "trust", which is a criterion for Power. McPhillips explained that it is at least 50 percent less compared to the result in the first survey conducted in 2016.
Other notable performances are on Business (3rd) and Cultural Influence (4th).
The "Land of Free", however, lags behind on Open for Business subcategory -- at 45th. This means it is not easy to be an entrepreneur in the US because of many factors, including manufacturing costs, corruption, and bureaucracy. This sub ranking has a weighted score of 11 percent, the fourth-lowest.
The ranking of the US is also not great for the Mover, the category for economic growth and development. This subcategory is heavily concentrated in Asia, with the United Arab Emirates, India and China occupying the first three.
So which is the best?
According to the panelists, Switzerland is the best in the overall ranking. It got a perfect, and all but Heritage subcategories are above Top 20.
The country's strong economy is driven by favorable tax rates and high-quality financial services. This leads to a low unemployment rate and high gross domestic products per capita.
When it comes to culture, Switzerland boasts its diversity. Regions have distinct cultural identities and have four different major languages - German, Italian, French, and Romansh.
Lastly, the small country in Central Europe is known for its neutrality. For instance, it is not a member of the European Union and has never participated in the world wars.
As a result, it became a popular location for multiple international bodies, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations.
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