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Denmark world’s fourth best place to live: UN

Denmark is now the world’s fourth best country to live in after leaping six places in the UN’s annual human development report, overtaking Germany, the United States and The Netherlands.

Published: 14 December 2015 15:38 CET

Denmark world's fourth best place to live: UN

More than 60 percent of adult Danes are enrolled in some form of education. Photo: Ministry of Education

According to the UN Development Programme’s Human Development Report 2015, Denmark is now only beaten by Norway, Australia and Switzerland, in what it can provide to its citizens.

The report particularly praised Denmark’s much vaunted “flexicurity” system, under which employees can be easily hired and fired but are protected by generous unemployment benefits and training schemes.

“Denmark is making strides providing security alongside re-skilling and skills upgrading in an increasingly flexible job market,” the report reads.

It also praised the high participation in adult education in the country, with more than 60 percent of adults enrolled in some kind of course.

In the UNDP’s 2014 report Denmark came a disappointing 10th worldwide.

'The war must end now': UN Sec-Gen meets Swedish PM in Stockholm

After a bilateral meeting with Magdalena Andersson on the security situation in Europe, Guterres warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could lead to a global food crisis that would hurt some of the world’s most vulnerable people.

“It is causing immense suffering, destruction and devastation of the country. But it also inflames a three-dimensional global crisis in food, energy and finance that is pummelling the most vulnerable people, countries and economies,” the Portuguese diplomat told a joint press conference with Andersson.

He stressed the need for “quick and decisive action to ensure a steady flow of food and energy,” including “lifting export restrictions, allocating surpluses and reserves to vulnerable populations and addressing food price increases to calm market volatility.”

Between the two, Russia and Ukraine produce around 30 percent of the global wheat supply.

Guterres was in Stockholm to take part in the Stockholm 50+ conference, which celebrates the 50th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment.

The conference, which was held on the suggestion of the Swedish government in 1972 was the first UN meeting to discuss human impacts on the global environment, and led to the establishment of the UN Environment Program (UNEP).

At the joint press conference, Andersson said that discussions continued between Sweden and Turkey over the country’s continuing opposition to Sweden’s application to join the Nato security alliance.

“We have held discussions with Turkey and I’m looking forward to continuing the constructive meetings with Turkey in the near future,” she said, while refusing to go into detail on Turkey’s demands.

“We are going to take the demands which have been made of Sweden directly with them, and the same goes for any misunderstandings which have arisen,” she said.

At the press conference, Guterres condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine as “a violation of its territorial integrity and a violation of the UN Charter”.

“The war must end now,” he said.

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