Singapore ranks 7th in global well-being league table
Singapore has been ranked seventh in a global well-being league table - the only non-European country in the top 10.
Singapore's scores have improved across most of the study's 10 areas, particularly infrastructure and employment.
It scores above the Asean average on all indicators except economic stability, where its ranking has fallen 24 places from 2009 to this year.
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) carried out the annual study. It assessed economic stability based on three indicators: inflation, inflation volatility and gross domestic product (GDP) growth volatility.
Singapore's relatively low score for economic stability - 81 out of a possible 100 - is driven by its GDP growth volatility, said Mr Vincent Chin, senior partner and managing director.
"This can be explained by the fact that as a small open economy, Singapore's economic growth and business cycle fluctuations are more pronounced relative to other countries that are less economically open and outwardly oriented," he noted.
"The decline in economic stability over the past decade also reflects that some countries are performing better."
Over the last decade, Singapore's overall ranking has fluctuated between ninth and sixth.
EQUALITY
The biggest relative gains have been in employment and equality.
In contrast, it has fallen 25 places for its performance in terms of the environment, its lowest-scoring area.
BCG noted countries better at generating well-being for their citizens also "tended to post faster economic growth and recover more quickly from recession in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis".
"Policymakers do not need to choose between boosting near-term economic growth and improving the quality of life for citizens," it concluded. - THE STRAITS TIMES
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