Global Prosperity Rising While US and UK Economies Decline -- LONDON, October 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- LONDON, October 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Norway leads world in 2013, as global prosperity continues to rise. US & UK suffer falling economic performance. Legatum Institute reveals its '20:20 Vision' of countries expected to climb the prosperity rankings. The latest Legatum Prosperity Index™, which ranks nations according to extensive wealth and wellbeing factors, reveals global prosperity has risen over the past five years, largely through improvements in entrepreneurship, health and education. Norway leads the overall rankings for the fifth year, followed by Switzerland (2nd), Canada (3rd), Sweden (4th), New Zealand (5th) and Denmark (6th). The US (11th) and UK (16th) are facing economic decline, dropping four and two places respectively in this sub-index[1]. The UK has also dropped three places in the overall prosperity rankings since last year. In its seventh year, the Legatum Prosperity Index™ is a unique assessment of global wealth and wellbeing, benchmarking 142 countries in eight distinct sub-indices.[1] Jeffrey Gedmin, President and CEO of the Legatum Institute, said: "Since the inaugural Legatum Prosperity Index™, the world has seen many countries experience continuous improvements in wealth and wellbeing." But we cannot afford to be complacent. Issues of war, governance and personal freedom continue to dog the Middle East and parts of Africa. Leading nations are not exempt, with the US and UK experiencing poor performance in recent years. 20:20 Vision To mark global progress since the launch of the Index, the Legatum Institute is highlighting twenty countries as regional or sub-index leaders predicted to move up the rankings by 2020. Included on this list are Bangladesh, which has improved in seven sub-indices, and Kazakhstan, which has risen seven places to 47th in the overall rankings since 2009. Trinidad & Tobago and Slovakia are also listed, having experienced increases in prosperity and strong economic growth, as well as taking positive strides to overcome national challenges. For the full '20:20 Vision' list, please visit http://www.prosperity.com/#/media/ The Americas: Latin America on the up Latin America has seen a rise in overall prosperity following improvements across seven sub-indices since 2009. Paraguay (68th), Trinidad & Tobago (42th) and Bolivia (86th) show the biggest improvements, while Uruguay (30th) leads the sub-region. Canada (3rd) leads the rankings for the region, while the US (11th) remains outside the top ten. MENA & Sub-Saharan Africa: Poor governance obstructs prosperity Falling Governance scores and challenges to Personal Freedom limit prosperity in a significant number of countries. Syria (122th) and Egypt (108th) have fallen down the rankings and even the highest-ranking Sub-Saharan nations - Botswana (72nd), South Africa (77nd) and Namibia (93nd) - have declined. Asia Pacific: Economic strength turbo-charges prosperity Improvements in the Economy sub-index have kindled overall advances in Asia, with China (51st), Thailand (53rd) and Malaysia (44th) all experiencing a rise in prosperity. India (106th) has declined overall - overtaken for the first time by Bangladesh (103rd). Pakistan (132nd) displays little progress, hampered by security-related challenges. Europe: Two-speed trend continues, Germany (14th) has recorded the highest increase in overall prosperity in Europe since 2009, bypassing the UK (16th). The majority of European countries are becoming more prosperous, exemplified by ex-communist nations Slovenia (24th), Czech Republic (29th), Estonia (36th) and Slovakia (38th). [1] Full definitions of the eight sub-indices can be found at http://www.prosperity.com For more information about the Legatum Institute visit: http://www.li.com For more information or to arrange an interview with Jeffrey Gedmin, please contact: Shazia Ejaz +44 (0) 207-148-5422 / shazia.ejaz@li.com Julia Burns +44- (0) 1273-716-820 / teamlegatuminstitute@manbitesdog.com SOURCE Legatum Institute