Taiwan ranked top in Asia, 10th in world on EIU freedom index

London, Feb. 15 (CNA) Taiwan remains top in Asia and 10th globally among the 167 countries and territories ranked in the Democracy Index 2023 released on Thursday by the London-based Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

However, Taiwan's score of 8.92 out of 10 was slightly lower than the 8.99 it was awarded in 2022, according to the EIU's "Democracy Index 2023: Age of Conflict."

In Asia, Taiwan led regional partners South Korea and Japan, which were ranked 16th and 22nd, respectively, according to the index report.

In 2021, Taiwan ranked as the 8th-strongest democracy in the world and the strongest in Asia, also with a score of 8.99.

According to the 2023 Democracy Index, Norway remains the most democratic country, a position it has occupied for 14 years, followed by New Zealand and Iceland.

The top 10 is rounded out by Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Ireland, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Taiwan.

Meanwhile, China and Uzbekistan tied for 148th place.

The EIU is an economics consultancy associated with The Economist magazine that provides forecasting and advisory services.

The Economist said Wednesday in a report on the rankings that "this year should be a triumphant one for democracy. More people are expected to vote in national elections in 2024 than ever before. But many elections will be problematic."

This year's democracy index shows that "only 43 of the more than 70 elections are expected to be fully free and fair," according to The Economist.

The index ranks countries and territories based on 60 indicators, grouped into five categories: electoral process and pluralism, functioning of government, political participation, political culture and civil liberties.

Based on the indicators, each country is given an overall score from 0 to 10 and is classified as either a "full democracy," "flawed democracy," "hybrid regime" or "authoritarian regime."

The EIU said in its annual index report that last year was "an inauspicious year for democracy" with the average global index score falling to its lowest level of 5.23 since the index began in 2006. In 2022, the score was 5.29.

"The increasing incidence of violent conflict has badly dented the global democracy score and prevented a recovery after the pandemic years of 2020-22," according to the report.

According to the 2023 index, less than 8 percent of the world's population live in a full democracy, while up to 39.4 percent live under authoritarian rule, up from 36.9 percent in the 2022 report, the EIU stated.

Western Europe is the only climber in the index, with 15 out of 24 "full democracies" globally located in the region.

Canada is the only "full democracy" in North America, while the United States has been classified as a "flawed democracy" since 2016.

For Asia and Australasia, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan are listed as "full democracies."

However, Asia's overall score dropped from 5.46 in 2022 to 5.41 in 2023, the lowest since 2006.