DOHA: Qatar took the 9th spot in attracting foreign investments and the 25th ‘Best Country’ worldwide, up by one place compared to 2023, as per the latest ‘Best Countries in the World’ rankings by US News & World Reports. This significant milestone enabled the country to move up four places Y-O-Y in the attribute that assesses where respondents would like to live, signalling that Qatar is drawing more interest in this sector.

Speaking to The Peninsula, Elliott Davis, Analyst and Reporter at US News & World Report on Best Countries said that Qatar’s robust performance has boosted the growing GDP, eventuating the country to rank among the best countries globally.

He said: “Qatar turned in a solid performance for the 2024 version of rankings, entering the top 25 overall. It ranks in the top 30 for six of the 10 sub rankings, including a number 3 placement in movers, which assesses a country’s prospects for future growth depending on factors such as how prepared it is to weather challenges posed by the global economy.”

However, Qatar ranks in the bottom half, ranking 58 on the ‘Start a Business’ list, landing at number 23 in entrepreneurship and 34 in ‘Business Opportunities’, respectively.

“It did not rise or fall in the entrepreneurship sub-ranking, but Qatar did jump 37 spots in ‘Open for Business’, which represented the largest sub-ranking increase among all countries we assessed,” Davis noted.

On the other hand, Qatar is placed at number 18 in the ‘Cultural Influence’ sub ranking. The researcher stressed that it “Assesses how much of a ‘trendsetter’ a country is perceived to be – jumping three spots in that sub-ranking compared to 2023. But in terms of tourism – one of the attributes that informs the separate adventure sub ranking – Qatar ranks number 36, which is still close to the top third of countries on our list.”

Meanwhile, the country declined one spot in the movers’ sub ranking as compared to last year to rank three among the top 89 nations in the US News & World rankings.

“Its massive rise in the ‘Open-for-Business’ category, however, paints a positive picture of how global citizens view Qatar’s economy. It is also in the top 25 for the agility sub ranking, which assesses a country’s adaptability,” he said.

Qatar also indicated a staunch performance by jumping three places in the ‘Power’ sub-ranking, coupled with the improved ‘Open for Business’ category, a resounding indicator of respondents’ and investors’ viewpoints on its progression in global standing.

In its overall ‘Best Countries’ rankings in 2024, Switzerland continued to dominate the list for the third consecutive time, followed by Japan and the United States.