Statista presents the ‘Super Index’. A ranking of industrialized nations and emerging markets according to their performance in the most important and largest indices in the world. Germany impresses with very good results and takes first place. Canada and the United Kingdom are ranked second and third in the index, respectively. Türkiye is in last place.

Statista has been known for years as a reliable partner for the concise aggregation and provision of data in a wide range of specialist areas. This December, they are transferring their expertise in the collation and interpretation of figures in the field of indices. After extensive research and analysis, the result is an index that compares selected industrialized nations and emerging economies in the most important key characteristics of developed countries and ranks them according to performance.

This ‘Super Index’ focuses on a country's progress in terms of democracy, the environment, competitiveness and further social, political and ethical dimensions. The evaluation is based on the results of the nations in selected indices using a weighted arithmetic formula. The result of each country includes the values of the World Democracy Index of the Economist Intelligence Unit, the Environmental Performance Index of the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy, the IMD World Competitiveness Ranking of the International Institute for Management Development and the Human Development Index of the UN Development Programme. 

The World Democracy Index assesses the state of democracy in a country based on categories such as electoral processes, civil liberties and government functionality. The Environmental Performance Index looks at advances in environmental protection and sustainability policy, including factors such as air quality, biodiversity and climate protection. The IMD World Competitiveness Ranking measures a country's competitiveness based on economic performance, efficiency of the state, companies and infrastructure. Finally, the Human Development Index assesses the core areas of human development such as life expectancy, knowledge and standard of living. 

These indices originate from renowned institutions and cover all aspects to provide a comprehensive picture of the countries' social, economic, environmental and political performance. Their combination ensures a multidimensional analysis, provides well-founded insights into the strengths and weaknesses of the nations and enables a balanced assessment.

The selection of countries includes the G7 countries Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, the United States, Canada and Japan. To broaden the perspective, five additional nations with the highest share of global GDP adjusted for purchasing power in 2023 were added. These are Brazil, China, Türkiye, India and Indonesia. All the countries have in common their significant influence on the global economy and on potential reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

In this country comparison, Germany scores highly. This is due to its economic strength as an industrial and export nation, its democratic values, its progressive environmental policy, its strong healthcare system, its low-cost education, its high life expectancy and its leading role in international organizations compared to the other countries surveyed. Türkiye, on the other hand, was ranked last. This can be explained by the complex economic, political and social hurdles such as high inflation and unemployment, which hinder its development and international competitiveness.

In general, it can be observed that the G7 countries dominate the upper ranks of the table. This reflects their strong economic development, high living standards and relatively good performance in areas such as democracy and the environment. At the same time, the weaknesses of the emerging economies become apparent: Their results make it clear that, despite their economic importance, in individual areas such as the environment or democracy, these countries would have to achieve better scores in the corresponding individual indices in order to move up in the ‘Super Index’. If we would assume that the form of government is an unchanging variable and therefore would not use the democracy index to calculate the weighted average, Germany would still remain in first place in the ranking. Italy (2), Japan (6), Indonesia (9), Canada (4) and Brazil (10) would move up further.

The results of the ‘Super Index’ combine relevant values of the analyzed nations and paint a clear picture. Germany's top position emphasizes the country's achievements and strengths - a positive counterpoint in the face of current political and economic challenges.

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