Chart of the Week

Ranked: The Social Mobility of 82 Countries

Published

2 years ago

February 7, 2020

Katie Jones

Social Mobility Infographic

Ranked: The Social Mobility of 82 Countries

It’s an unfortunate truth that a person’s opportunities can be partially tethered to their socioeconomic status at birth.

Although winning or losing the “birth lottery” will continue to shape the lives of generations to come, climbing the socioeconomic ladder is possible. However, it boils down to what opportunities people are afforded in the country they live in.

Today’s chart pulls data from the inaugural Global Social Mobility report produced by the World Economic Forum. The report ranks 82 countries according to their performance across five key pillars: healthcare, education, technology access, working conditions, and social protection.

While most countries aim to create a level playing field, which places best live up to this lofty and challenging mission?

The Spectrum of Social Mobility

Social mobility refers to the movement of individuals either up or down the socioeconomic ladder relative to their current standing, such as a low-income family moving up to become a part of the middle class.

Countries with high levels of social mobility exhibit lower levels of income inequality and provide more equally shared opportunities for its citizens across each of the five pillars.

Here is how all 82 countries rank, according to the report:

Ranking	Countries	Index Score
#1	Denmark	85.2
#2	Norway	83.6
#3	Finland	83.6
#4	Sweden	83.5
#5	Iceland	82.7
#6	Netherlands	82.4
#7	Switzerland	82.1
#8	Belgium	80.1
#9	Austria	80.1
#10	Luxembourg	79.8
#11	Germany	78.8
#12	France	76.7
#13	Slovenia	76.4
#14	Canada	76.1
#15	Japan	76.1
#16	Australia	75.1
#17	Malta	75.0
#18	Ireland	75.0
#19	Czech Republic	74.7
#20	Singapore	74.6
#21	United Kingdom	74.4
#22	New Zealand	74.3
#23	Estonia	73.5
#24	Portugal	72.0
#25	Korean Republic	71.4
#26	Lithuania	70.5
#27	United States	70.4
#28	Spain	70.0
#29	Cyprus	69.4
#30	Poland	69.1
#31	Latvia	69.0
#32	Slovak Republic	68.5
#33	Israel	68.1
#34	Italy	67.4
#35	Uruguay	67.1
#36	Croatia	66.7
#37	Hungary	65.8
#38	Kazakhstan	64.8
#39	Russian Federation	64.7
#40	Bulgaria	63.8
#41	Serbia	63.8
#42	Romania	63.1
#43	Malaysia	62.0
#44	Costa Rica	61.6
#45	China	61.5
#46	Ukraine	61.2
#47	Chile	60.3
#48	Greece	59.8
#49	Moldova	59.6
#50	Vietnam	57.8
#51	Argentina	57.3
#52	Saudi Arabia	57.1
#53	Georgia	55.6
#54	Albania	55.6
#55	Thailand	55.4
#56	Armenia	53.9
#57	Ecuador	53.9
#58	Mexico	52.6
#59	Sri Lanka	52.3
#60	Brazil	52.1
#61	Philippines	51.7
#62	Tunisia	51.7
#63	Panama	51.4
#64	Turkey	51.3
#65	Colombia	50.3
#66	Peru	49.9
#67	Indonesia	49.3
#68	El Salvador	47.4
#69	Paraguay	46.8
#70	Ghana	45.5
#71	Egypt	44.8
#72	Laos	43.8
#73	Morocco	43.7
#74	Honduras	43.5
#75	Guatemala	43.5
#76	India	42.7
#77	South Africa	41.4
#78	Bangladesh	40.2
#79	Pakistan	36.7
#80	Cameroon	36
#81	Senegal	36.0
#82	Côte d’Ivoire	34.5

There are a number of countries that set an example for social mobility that others can follow.

The Mobility Medal Winners

All of the countries in the top 10 are European, but it is the Nordic countries that sit comfortably at the top of the ranks.

Denmark holds the title for the most socially mobile country in the world, boasting an index score of 85.2. If a person is born into a low-income family in Denmark, the WEF estimates it would take two generations to reach a median income. In contrast, someone in Brazil or South Africa would take nine generations at the current pace of growth.

As one of the few non-European countries in the top 20, Canada also performs well across the majority of pillars, but similarly to Denmark, it could improve in the area of lifelong learning which includes providing support for the unemployed and teaching digital skills.

The Least Socially Mobile Countries

Developing country Côte d’Ivoire sits at the bottom of the ranks, with an index score of just 34.5. As a nation once ravaged by internal conflict and turbulent economic shifts, the resulting poverty rate remains high at 46.3%.

While the government has made improvements to its basic social services, the country falls behind on categories like access to education and fair wages, and retains the highest gender inequality rate in the world.

Despite a significant decrease in the percentage of people living in absolute poverty, India ranks low on the index in 76th place. Structural reform is required across all pillars if India is to increase its score, especially in relation to fair wages and education.

Why Invest in Social Mobility?

According to the report, most economies are far from providing fair conditions for their citizens to thrive, with the greatest challenges ranging from lack of social protection and low wages to poor lifelong learning systems.

Countries that fail to invest in the key pillars of social mobility could experience damaging consequences for governments and citizens alike:

Precarity (the unpredictability of living without secure and well-paid employment)
Perceived loss of identity and dignity
Weakening social fabric
Eroding trust in institutions
Disenchantment with political processes

Aside from the social returns, the economic impact of investing in the right blend of social mobility pillars could be substantial.

Calculating the True Cost

The report dives into the opportunity cost of low social mobility and finds that if each country increased its score by just 10 index points, it could result in an extra 4.41% of cumulative GDP growth for the global economy by 2030—equal to $5.1 trillion.

China alone could add $1 trillion of GDP growth by 2030 if a 10 point increase is achieved:

social mobility true cost

Although social mobility can act as an economic lever, many countries are struggling to provide the optimal conditions for their citizens to thrive. For those countries, globalization and technology may continue to exacerbate income inequality.

If countries are unable to create new social mobility pathways towards more inclusive economies, they risk being stuck in a cycle where inequality remains entrenched—and history continues to repeats itself.

Support the Future of Data Storytelling

Sorry to interrupt your reading, but we have a favor to ask. At Visual Capitalist we believe in a world where data can be understood by everyone. That’s why we want to build the VC App - the first app of its kind combining verifiable and transparent data with beautiful, memorable visuals. All available for free.

As a small, independent media company we don’t have the expertise in-house or the funds to build an app like this. So we’re asking our community to help us raise funds on Kickstarter.

If you believe in data-driven storytelling, join the movement and back us on Kickstarter!

Thank you.

Support the future of data storytelling, back us on Kickstarter

Related Topics:technology Education europe healthcare asia north america social mobility demographic shift socio-economic status work opportunities

Up Next

Mapped: The Ins and Outs of Remittance Flows

Don't Miss

Meet China’s 113 Cities With More Than One Million People

Click for Comments

Chart of the Week

The Road to Recovery: Which Economies are Reopening?

We look at mobility rates as well as COVID-19 recovery rates for 41 economies, to see which countries are reopening for business.

Published

2 years ago

May 28, 2020

Iman Ghosh

The Road to Recovery: Which Economies are Reopening?

COVID-19 has brought the world to a halt—but after months of uncertainty, it seems that the situation is slowly taking a turn for the better.

Today’s chart measures the extent to which 41 major economies are reopening, by plotting two metrics for each country: the mobility rate and the COVID-19 recovery rate:

Mobility Index
This refers to the change in activity around workplaces, subtracting activity around residences, measured as a percentage deviation from the baseline.
COVID-19 Recovery Rate
The number of recovered cases in a country is measured as the percentage of total cases.

Data for the first measure comes from Google’s COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports, which relies on aggregated, anonymous location history data from individuals. Note that China does not show up in the graphic as the government bans Google services.

COVID-19 recovery rates rely on values from CoronaTracker, using aggregated information from multiple global and governmental databases such as WHO and CDC.

Reopening Economies, One Step at a Time

In general, the higher the mobility rate, the more economic activity this signifies. In most cases, mobility rate also correlates with a higher rate of recovered people in the population.

Here’s how these countries fare based on the above metrics.

Country	Mobility Rate	Recovery Rate	Total Cases	Total Recovered
Argentina	-56%	31.40%	14,702	4,617
Australia	-41%	92.03%	7,150	6,580
Austria	-100%	91.93%	16,628	15,286
Belgium	-105%	26.92%	57,849	15,572
Brazil	-48%	44.02%	438,812	193,181
Canada	-67%	52.91%	88,512	46,831
Chile	-110%	41.58%	86,943	36,150
Colombia	-73%	26.28%	25,366	6,665
Czechia	-29%	70.68%	9,140	6,460
Denmark	-93%	88.43%	11,512	10,180
Finland	-93%	81.57%	6,743	5,500
France	-100%	36.08%	186,238	67,191
Germany	-99%	89.45%	182,452	163,200
Greece	-32%	47.28%	2,906	1,374
Hong Kong	-10%	97.00%	1,067	1,035
Hungary	-49%	52.31%	3,816	1,996
India	-65%	42.88%	165,386	70,920
Indonesia	-77%	25.43%	24,538	6,240
Ireland	-79%	88.92%	24,841	22,089
Israel	-31%	87.00%	16,872	14,679
Italy	-52%	64.99%	231,732	150,604
Japan	-33%	84.80%	16,683	14,147
Malaysia	-53%	80.86%	7,629	6,169
Mexico	-69%	69.70%	78,023	54,383
Netherlands	-97%	0.01%	45,950	3
New Zealand	-21%	98.01%	1,504	1,474
Norway	-100%	91.87%	8,411	7,727
Philippines	-87%	23.08%	15,588	3,598
Poland	-36%	46.27%	22,825	10,560
Portugal	-65%	58.99%	31,596	18,637
Singapore	-105%	55.02%	33,249	18,294
South Africa	-74%	52.44%	27,403	14,370
South Korea	-4%	91.15%	11,344	10,340
Spain	-67%	69.11%	284,986	196,958
Sweden	-93%	13.91%	35,727	4,971
Switzerland	-101%	91.90%	30,796	28,300
Taiwan	4%	95.24%	441	420
Thailand	-36%	96.08%	3,065	2,945
U.S.	-56%	28.20%	1,768,346	498,720
United Kingdom	-82%	0.05%	269,127	135
Vietnam	15%	85.02%	327	278

Mobility data as of May 21, 2020 (Latest available). COVID-19 case data as of May 29, 2020.

In the main scatterplot visualization, we’ve taken things a step further, assigning these countries into four distinct quadrants:

1. High Mobility, High Recovery

High recovery rates are resulting in lifted restrictions for countries in this quadrant, and people are steadily returning to work.

New Zealand has earned praise for its early and effective pandemic response, allowing it to curtail the total number of cases. This has resulted in a 98% recovery rate, the highest of all countries. After almost 50 days of lockdown, the government is recommending a flexible four-day work week to boost the economy back up.

2. High Mobility, Low Recovery

Despite low COVID-19 related recoveries, mobility rates of countries in this quadrant remain higher than average. Some countries have loosened lockdown measures, while others did not have strict measures in place to begin with.

Brazil is an interesting case study to consider here. After deferring lockdown decisions to state and local levels, the country is now averaging the highest number of daily cases out of any country. On May 28th, for example, the country had 24,151 new cases and 1,067 new deaths.

3. Low Mobility, High Recovery

Countries in this quadrant are playing it safe, and holding off on reopening their economies until the population has fully recovered.

Italy, the once-epicenter for the crisis in Europe is understandably wary of cases rising back up to critical levels. As a result, it has opted to keep its activity to a minimum to try and boost the 65% recovery rate, even as it slowly emerges from over 10 weeks of lockdown.

4. Low Mobility, Low Recovery

Last but not least, people in these countries are cautiously remaining indoors as their governments continue to work on crisis response.

With a low 0.05% recovery rate, the United Kingdom has no immediate plans to reopen. A two-week lag time in reporting discharged patients from NHS services may also be contributing to this low number. Although new cases are leveling off, the country has the highest coronavirus-caused death toll across Europe.

The U.S. also sits in this quadrant with over 1.7 million cases and counting. Recently, some states have opted to ease restrictions on social and business activity, which could potentially result in case numbers climbing back up.

Over in Sweden, a controversial herd immunity strategy meant that the country continued business as usual amid the rest of Europe’s heightened regulations. Sweden’s COVID-19 recovery rate sits at only 13.9%, and the country’s -93% mobility rate implies that people have been taking their own precautions.

COVID-19’s Impact on the Future

It’s important to note that a “second wave” of new cases could upend plans to reopen economies. As countries reckon with these competing risks of health and economic activity, there is no clear answer around the right path to take.

COVID-19 is a catalyst for an entirely different future, but interestingly, it’s one that has been in the works for a while.

Without being melodramatic, COVID-19 is like the last nail in the coffin of globalization…The 2008-2009 crisis gave globalization a big hit, as did Brexit, as did the U.S.-China trade war, but COVID is taking it to a new level.

—Carmen Reinhart, incoming Chief Economist for the World Bank

Will there be any chance of returning to “normal” as we know it?

Markets

Visualizing the Countries Most Reliant on Tourism

With international travel grinding to a halt, here are the economies that have the most to lose from a lack of tourism.

Published

2 years ago

May 22, 2020

Dorothy Neufeld

Visualizing the Countries Most Reliant on Tourism

Without a steady influx of tourism revenue, many countries could face severe economic damage.

As the global travel and tourism industry stalls, the spillover effects to global employment are wide-reaching. A total of 330 million jobs are supported by this industry around the world, and it contributes 10%, or $8.9 trillion to global GDP each year.

Today’s infographic uses data from the World Travel & Tourism Council, and it highlights the countries that depend the most on the travel and tourism industry according to employment—quantifying the scale that the industry contributes to the health of the global economy.

Ground Control

Worldwide, 44 countries rely on the travel and tourism industry for more than 15% of their total share of employment. Unsurprisingly, many of the countries suffering the most economic damage are island nations.

At the same time, data reveals the extent to which certain larger nations rely on tourism. In New Zealand, for example, 479,000 jobs are generated by the travel and tourism industry, while in Cambodia tourism contributes to 2.4 million jobs.

Rank	Country	T&T Share of Jobs (2019)	T&T Jobs (2019)	Population
1	Antigua & Barbuda	91%	33,800	97,900
2	Aruba	84%	35,000	106,800
3	St. Lucia	78%	62,900	183,600
4	US Virgin Islands	69%	28,800	104,400
5	Macau	66%	253,700	649,300
6	Maldives	60%	155,600	540,500
7	St. Kitts & Nevis	59%	14,100	53,200
8	British Virgin Islands	54%	5,500	30,200
9	Bahamas	52%	103,900	393,200
10	Anguilla	51%	3,800	15,000
11	St. Vincent & the Grenadines	45%	19,900	110,900
12	Seychelles	44%	20,600	98,300
13	Grenada	43%	24,300	112,500
14	Former Netherlands Antilles	41%	25,700	26,200
15	Belize	39%	64,800	397,600
16	Cape Verde	39%	98,300	556,000
17	Dominica	39%	13,600	72,000
18	Vanuatu	36%	29,000	307,100
19	Barbados	33%	44,900	287,400
20	Cayman Islands	33%	12,300	65,700
21	Jamaica	33%	406,100	2,961,000
22	Montenegro	33%	66,900	628,100
23	Georgia	28%	488,200	3,989,000
24	Cambodia	26%	2,371,100	16,719,000
25	Fiji	26%	90,700	896,400
26	Croatia	25%	383,400	4,105,000
27	Philippines	24%	10,237,700	109,600,000
28	Sao Tome and Principe	23%	14,500	219,200
29	Bermuda	23%	7,800	62,300
30	Albania	22%	254,300	2,880,000
31	Iceland	22%	44,100	341,200
32	Greece	22%	846,200	10,420,000
33	Thailand	21%	8,054,600	69,800,000
34	Malta	21%	52,800	441,500
35	New Zealand	20%	479,400	4,822,000
36	Lebanon	19%	434,200	6,825,000
37	Mauritius	19%	104,200	1,272,000
38	Portugal	19%	902,400	10,197,000
39	Kiribati	18%	6,600	119,000
40	Gambia	18%	129,600	2,417,000
41	Jordan	18%	254,700	10,200,000
42	Dominican Republic	17%	810,800	10,848,000
43	Uruguay	16%	262,500	3,474,000
44	Namibia	15%	114,600	2,541,000

Croatia, another tourist hotspot, is hoping to reopen in time for peak season—the country generated tourism revenues of $13B in 2019. With a population of over 4 million, travel and tourism contributes to 25% of its workforce.

How the 20 Largest Economies Stack Up

Tourist-centric countries remain the hardest hit from global travel bans, but the world’s biggest economies are also feeling the impact.

In Spain, tourism ranks as the third highest contributor to its economy. If lockdowns remain in place until September, it is projected to lose $68 billion (€62 billion) in revenues.

Rank	Country	Travel and Tourism, Contribution to GDP
1	Mexico	15.5%
2	Spain	14.3%
3	Italy	13.0%
4	Turkey	11.3%
5	China	11.3%
6	Australia	10.8%
7	Saudi Arabia	9.5%
8	Germany	9.1%
9	United Kingdom	9.0%
10	U.S.	8.6%
11	France	8.5%
12	Brazil	7.7%
13	Switzerland	7.6%
14	Japan	7.0%
15	India	6.8%
16	Canada	6.3%
17	Netherlands	5.7%
18	Indonesia	5.7%
19	Russia	5.0%
20	South Korea	2.8%

On the other hand, South Korea is impacted the least: just 2.8% of its GDP is reliant on tourism.

Travel, Interrupted

Which countries earn the most from the travel and tourism industry in absolute dollar terms?

Topping the list was the U.S., with tourism contributing over $1.8 trillion to its economy, or 8.6% of its GDP in 2019. The U.S. remains a global epicenter for COVID-19 cases, and details remain unconfirmed if the country will reopen to visitors before summer.

Travel and tourism contribution to GDP in absolute terms

Meanwhile, the contribution of travel and tourism to China’s economy has more than doubled over the last decade, approaching $1.6 trillion. To help bolster economic activity, China and South Korea have eased restrictions by establishing a travel corridor.

As countries slowly reopen, other travel bubbles are beginning to make headway. For example, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have eased travel restrictions by creating an established travel zone. Australia and New Zealand have a similar arrangement on the horizon. These travel bubbles allow citizens from each country to travel within a given zone.

Of course, COVID-19 will have a lasting impact on employment and global economic activity with inconceivable outcomes. When the dust finally settles, could global tourism face a reckoning?