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The economic cost of
violence according to the 2015 Global Peace Index has reached a staggering US$14.3
trillion with Syria the least peaceful country.
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The cost of violence around the world reached a record US$14.3
trillion in 2014, equivalent to the combined economies of Brazil, Canada,
France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom, a global security report said on
Wednesday.
The divide between the
most and least peaceful regions deepened with many Middle Eastern and African
countries sinking further into violence, according to research by the Australia-based Institute
for Economics and Peace (IEP).
Syria ranked as the
least peaceful country in the 2015 Global Peace Index,
while Libya saw the most severe
deterioration. Iceland remained the most peaceful.
World
Bulletin / News Desk reports:
"The (cost of
violence) has been largely associated with the increase of deaths in conflict,
the ongoing economic consequences of conflicts in the countries where they're
occuring and also the increased cost associated with the displaced
people," IEP founder Steve Killelea told the Thomson Reuters Foundation
in a phone interview from London.
The cost of supporting
refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) has increased by 267 percent
since 2008 to US$128 billion as the numbers of uprooted people topped 50
million -- the highest level since World War Two.
However, it is expenses
related to the military, police forces and dealing with homicides that have had
the highest impact on costs, accounting for more than 68 percent of the total,
said the study.
Despite conflict in
the Ukraine, Europe continues to experience historic levels of
peace, with a decrease in homicide rates and the withdrawal of forces
from Iraq and Afghanistan.
But Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, South
Sudan and Central African Republic have all become more violent than a
year ago, according to the index of 162 states.
The intensity of conflict
has increased dramatically, said the study, with the number of people killed
rising to 180,000 in 2014 from 49,000 in 2010.
Middle
East and Northern Africa are the world's most violent regions overtaking South
Asia, which ranked worst in last year's study which covered 2013.
"With the changing
dynamics within the region it's very hard to know what the solutions are and to
make predictions for the next year," said Killelea.
The study
shows Guinea-Bissau, Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt and Benin have
seen the biggest improvements in peace.
Source: World
Bulletin / News Desk
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