The Failed State Index, 2008

The Fund for Peace, an independent research organization, and FOREIGN POLICY magazine present this fourth annual Failed States Index. Using 12 social, economic, political, and military indicators, the report ranks 177 states in order of their vulnerability to violent internal conflict and societal deterioration. To do so, the authors examined more than 30,000 publicly available sources, collected from May to December 2007, to form the basis of the index’s scores. The 60 most vulnerable states are listed in the rankings, and the full results are available at ForeignPolicy.com and fundforpeace.org.