"At Least We're Not Somalia!"

The country has the world's 18th ranked economy (by PPP), it is constantly growing (GDP-wise, too), and has a HDI of 0.702 (also growing), higher than Turkey's. How is that country failing?

The most telling is how you start the article, by lamenting Iran's “morality” with regard to Egypt – what does this has to do with the failed state of a nation? It is a huge own goal at the same time, because the US – the undeclared moral standard for you – has been morally even more questionable in its position towards Egypt, supporting Mubarak then betraying him. Or supporting the freedom fighters in Libya while crushing them in Afghanistan.

There would be some good points in the list, but it seems that by large it is just another in the long series of photo essays, each of them picturing “our enemies” and nothing more.

I'm skeptical about calling Bhutan a failed state. Sure, it is undeveloped and isolated, but its government is much more responsive and fair than almost any other government on this list. As a state, in the strict definition of the term, Bhutan is doing exceptionally well.The one exception may be a crisis of foreign refugees that the article didn't even mention. As for its lack of development, that has allowed Bhutan to avoid many of the problems that come with developed societies--environmental degradation, urban violence, and wide disparities in wealth, to name a few.
If we say there is only one standard to determine whether a state has succeeded or not, modeled after the US or Germany or Japan, then maybe you could say that Bhutan has failed. However, judging by how these countries look right now, in the throes of an economic hangover resulting largely from out-of-control development, we may want to reconsider that standard. We should not assume that urbanization is entirely a good thing, nor that subsistence agriculture is entirely bad. The reality is much more complicated, and that is one of the problems with reducing the measure of a state's success to a numerical index.
Apart from that, this was a good article.

The Lefties like Christiane Fair and other policy wonks of the Beltway and even Indian lefties want India to be a dove and make peace and love with all these failed states they are surrounded with.

Dream on Lefties!

Even with leaders like Obama and Bush, I still have to be happy that I am an American. Looking at the picture for Israel, if there is a god, why did he/she/it pick that place to let his/her/its presence known. Why not Hawaii, or for that matter, ANYPLACE else? It is more like god forsaken.

....and list all of sub-Saharan Africa as a failed state.

Well it is certainly true that Nepal is one of the least developed countries in the world but the reporting carried out here mis-represented on lot of things.

First, its Nepal constituent assembly not Nepal congress..
second, Constituent assembly was given mandated by Nepali people to draft a new constitution...

third, the conclusion lacks any understanding of Nepal current political situation-"the Maoists may be losing patience -- and thinking about going back to the trenches to fight for more"...it is not Maoist losing patience but the rise of different ethnic and religious groups could lead to country to disintegrate and lead towards failed state...

well the magazine lacks the critical insights..hope proper reporting could give a clearer picture of what's going in Nepal....

"On Sri Lanka, it said, "The government's final push against the rebels relied on the shelling of civilians and other atrocities, according to a 2010 report by the International Crisis Group.

"The most recent statistics from last year indicate that some 327,000 are still displaced from the conflict."

"Despite the pronounced fractures still lingering, the Sinhalese-dominated government in Colombo seems eager to forget the past," it added.

Magazine lacks the true picture of the SL. End of the 3o years war lets the people to start fresh. These figures are exaggerated figures. People are still not realized the true power is shifting from US
Chinese and Russians development programmes are around the country. No point of worring . this index is all politics. being underdogs is better.

i find it not a little disturbing that the failed state index is being tacitly portrayed & accepted as a definitive...however going through the scoring system and methodology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failed_state), i think it's obvious no serious academic or fact based conclusions can be derived on this...all it gives u is a media soundbite which have a possibility of being misleading or totally false...

...i've been living in Bangladesh for the last 17 years, and during the early 2000s was shocked to find a whole slew of writing depicting the country on verge of talibanization. this was completely at odds from what was happening on the ground, but these opinions were informed by similar pseudo-factual reports like the fsi...

p.s. the caption for bangladesh says lbj called it a 'basket case', i think it might have been henry kissinger...is there a case for failed journalism index? :)

The list of failed states in Africa is sober reading.

It would be interesting to see a counter-article which gives some examples of African states which escaped this trap and are heading towards prosperity.

The continent cannot be all doom and gloom.

Wait...Colombia, but no Central American countries (e.g. Nicaragua, Honduras)? Both compete perennially with Haiti for the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. Both have a history of political corruption and poor governance. I fear that Nicaragua in particular is slated for a potential disaster in November during the presidential elections.

So, a bunch of super clever foreign policy analysts, high on salaries, got together and plastered this magnificent photos. Ok.
Then they starting scratching their head like chimpanzees (and i'm sure the odd chimp was around the room) and decided that the MOST APPROPIATE title for the collection, the title that BEST SUMMARIZES the pictures, the countries they represent and the people living in these countries is... POSTCARDS FROM HELL.
Foreign Policy my ass. Elizabeth Dickinson, queen of snobbery. If your pictures represent HELL, you're it's harlot ambassador on Earth. FP is perhaps is think tank.

No it's not all doom and gloom, but good old FP and all other supposed do-gooders with fat salaries would hardly make a living if they told you it's not all doom and gloom. So, take these pictures as a propaganda stunt. Now you know what hell looks like (i imagined it a bit more red colour, but still), but DON'T WORRY, Foreign Policy is working hard to make the situation better. Isn't that a relief, eh?? Ufff, such a relief....

It's odd that Mexico, with the crazy drug cartels running the show and tens of thousands dying from gangs, is considered less "failing" than over half of the other nations on this list.

Given Greece and Ireland's troubles with debts it's also odd to see both them very high on the list (Ireland is less of a "failing" state than the US, Germany, England, etc).

Woww!!! Mexico is not on the list!! I guess is not as bad as we think it is....

India should be number one on this list. India has more poor people than all of these African failed states combined.

Many will disagree with this list because the list evokes emotion in them, it questions their advocacy for the "poor and downtroden" and makes them defensive because of their roots to said countries. But they know the list is true. Maybe rich, western nations had something - or a lot - to do with the origen of some of these hellish countries onset. No matter, they stand today as failures. It is only the personal bias of those who disagree that is responsible for an actual distorion of methodology.

Please, people, stop the knee-jerk reactions, stop the political correctness, balance your emotional side with reason, realize that while championing the failed cultures is noble, stating there is no difference between them and a country like the U.S. is a lie, albeit one that makes you feel better.

From cocaine to plutonium: mafia clan accused of trafficking nuclear waste

Authorities in Italy are investigating a mafia clan accused of trafficking nuclear waste and trying to make plutonium.
The ‘Ndrangheta mafia, which gained notoriety in August for its blood feud killings of six men in Germany, is alleged to have made illegal shipments of radioactive waste to Somalia, as well as seeking the “clandestine production” of other nuclear material.

Its true there was an increase in illegal dumping of Toxic wastes on the Somali waters by European and Asia firms, because the country had no functional government for the past 17 years. As a result almost all European and Asia firms started freely dumping their toxic wastes in Somali waters without paying for the service.

As a result of this, a group of enterprising Somalis leaving at the port of Eyl , a haven for piracy, approached the Italian mafias in Rome and explained their annoyance over the dumping of toxic wastes on their waters..

The group of Somalis then requested the Italian mafias to protect their waters and start collecting revenue from vessels plying the route. The Italian Mafias accepted to help their former protectorate by stopping the irresponsible dumping of toxics wastes on one condition, which was to seize any vessel travelling on the Somali waters and demand a ransom. Hence the beginning of a flourishing piracy business at the port of Eyl where NATO forces even fear to go

The Italian mafia is an old hand at illegal toxic-waste dumping, drug smuggling and kidnapping, but prosecutors now say it’s moved into sinister new lines of work providing services to foreign terrorists including Al Qaeda, and trafficking nuclear material. Francesco Basentini, head of anti-mafia police in Potenza, says his investigators have evidence that the Sicilian Cosa Nostra and Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta have been dealing in radioactive nuclear waste, some imported from elsewhere in Europe and the United States. And, he says, they’ve also been dabbling in the “clandestine production of plutonium.”

While Basentini won’t reveal the mob’s customers for the nuclear materials, Nicola Gratteri, an anti-mafia prosecutor in Calabria, confirms that Italian mafiosi are increasingly working with foreign terrorists, and investigators have fingered the Naples Camorra mob as a conduit for fake documents and arms for Al Qaeda. Gratteri sees a perverse logic behind the mafia’s cooperation with terrorists: to make Italy a valued part of their infrastructure rather a target of their attacks.

Unbelieveable....not even (1) one white middle aged guy among them....you know the ones that built America

Nothing quite like leadership is there?

Shocking really isn't it?

Well maybe not,after all the world has been a mess for years now.

You have to feel sorry for the young people who live in some of these regions,what kind of future have they got?

pretty bleak really,,sad but true.

When you think about it we are really lucky to be living in society that mostly the people have issues for are problems that simply don't compare to these failed countries.

MensTrendsAndIssues

This photo set is a haunting reminder all is not well with the world. It's also a great time to be thankful for what you do have in your life.

Living in Austin TX thankfully I don't have the concerns or daily struggles the peoples living in these areas and countries experience. But America is having it's own struggles so help your neighbors and have a giving spirit wherever and whenever you can.

The Burmese may be materially poor. But spiritually they can be counted among the richest.

Devout Buddhists, their daily offerings of gold, silver and precious gems to the pagodas were enough to make any country's treasurer cry.

That's why Marxism failed so miserably in Burma -- the dream of most Burmese nationalist leaders, including General Aung San -- Suu Kyi's father.

Suu’s dad, and uncle, was founding members of the Burma Communist party.

After 50 years of anti-capitalist rubbish, Burma has embraced *capitalism*, err, market economy.

Behold the new bride of Asia.

Meanwhile, Burma once was arguably one of the most-free societies in Asia, if not the world. When the Burmese voted in the 1960 general elections, the Negroes were denied that right. So, go preach democracy somewhere else.

For more Burmese perspectives, visit: https://www.economist.com/user/3322638/comments

Sincerely
Rich Mookerdum
Burmese-born journalist
richm009@gmail.com

No objection on this. Uganda is a real failed state whether we believe it or not.How can you describe a country ruled by one man and a small group of his own family karmaloop codes, relatives and friends (cronies) plus almost all failed/sham Gov't instituitions.

Talk of rampant corruption,sickening healthy facilities,poor quality education, wrecked roads,alarming povety,hunger and jiggers, lawlessness, army and police brutality, sectorianism and nepotism, the list goes on and on.

Is anyone besides me bothered that 1/3rd of the worlds people live in "failed" states?

It would seem that Abyei is the region that is most profitable to both the north and south of Sudan, yet when they decided to split the country into the north and the south, they never decided who would get what.

Maybe for a country that has that much oil, Abyei should go to the side whether South or North that has a the capacity to get the country out of it's impoverish state.

It will do neither side any good if neither one is not a guru masterclass and have the ability to rule the region with the best resources in the best way.

They might both want what is best for the country of Sudan but only the region that has the best expertise and resources should get Abyei.

People need food and they need to read and write and it cannot happen with a strong goverment to lead.

That's why Marxism failed so miserably in Burma -- the dream of most Burmese nationalist leaders, including General Aung San -- Suu Kyi's father. Seo

It seems like the more things change, the more they stay the same. For decades we have been shown pictures like these pointing out all the problems in Africa. From oil to diamonds to arms it seems like the problems will just never end. It's really amazing to me how people can actually treat each other.

Sometimes we forget just how good we have it in the United States where we actually have rule of law and where the police investigate murders instead of causing them. I just wish there was more focus on finding solutions than just pointing out how bad it is.

I was in Tunisia a few years ago with my girlfriend and we ran into a lot of trouble with the local police. Even in a country that is supposedly not a "failed state" the poverty and corruption was rampant and it seemed like only ten percent of the population was employed. Cambodia was the same way. Even after the violence ends, there is just so much damage.

It's amazing to me that even in his new millennium there are so many countries where the people don't have hope.

Poor kids have to suffer through this, its just such a sad thing, we should all contribute especially the filthy rich people.Free Psn Codes
Xbox Live Codes Free
Free Wii Points
Xbox Live Code Generator
Free Xbox Live Codes

Mexico is not in the list as some other pointed out already. What exactly are the characteristics of a failed stated? It is corruption, poverty, drugs, outlaw, may be debt?

If we go by debt alone, look at us, we are drowning on debt. So is the USA a failed state? Let’s just raise the debt ceiling and we will be out of trouble!

So maybe it is corruption, our friends south of the border live with this problem day in and day out. Today, Mexico is having elections. There are several states at grabs, people exercising their right to vote. However, do you know what the biggest concerns they have right now? As indicated by a close friend of mine that sent me an e-mail yesterday. They are praying that the elections are clean and that no “corruption” gets in the way of their vote, as they have experimented so many times.

But the battle is not even close to what it has been to be living with the terror brought by the drug problems across the border. So, what constitutes a failed stated?

Nice post man , keep up coming
escor tbayan,escor tistanbul

Maybe it's all true : the failed states, equivalent to the failed government
But, the people, civilians are still have the right to deserve the same human rights. It's our duty to participate, as a people lives in better states

Has anybody noticed most of the failed states in this index speak french?

I was in haiti when the earthquakes happened over there and let me tell you that is a failed country. They could not even play free online bingo like we can.

For me failed state refers to a country where not only do the people live in abject poverty but there is no obvious path for improvement and the government is either despotic or non existent.

On that basis Iraq (transition), Afghanistan (transition) and Pakistan (hmmm just should not be on list) do not qualify as failed states. I work in corporate events in London for the arm of a large international aid charity. One of the worst things is seeing the politization of aid by both the right and the left.

For example I would be the first to admit that Amnesty' International (brilliant though a lot of it's work is) tends to suffer from double standards especially as regards US. However I really think putting Pakistan on this list looks a little self serving from a US point of view at least from a UK perspective. It simply does not qualify. I also cannot see the point of putting Iraq and Afghanistan on this list either they are both clearly in transition and only time will tell if as nations they will succeed.

Whilst a debate on objectives and methods os of course essential we should be able to agree on the main facts surely?

In the list of countries left Nicaragua, Honduras, MExico, central america.... What I don't understand is why are problems in these countries when we are in a modern world. juegos de mario The rich are more rich and the poor are more poor. I'm sorry about Haititians and other countries have to send help to these countries.

It lets us NOT forget that it is always worse someplace else.

Fabulous photos, but a conceptually incoherent ranking (only in some cases involving failed states; often simply non-Western, relatively poor populations); accompanied by much snarky and supercilious text (not least the tarring of many marvelous places with the brush of "hell") and occasional inaccuracies (labelling Iran, Bhutan, or Togo , for instance, as "failed"; describing the demonstrations in Mauritania as starting in April [they began in March], as "flooding the streets [they were contained in a small area], and as being put down with "overwhelming force" [there was never any major confrontation].
More generally, if this many countries are mired in some sort of violence or poverty, it might be more productive to look at the broad historical and systemic forces producing such widespread results -- rather than taking such a disapproving and condescending approach.

I mean everybody does it, complaining about everything and even unimportant stuff. Sometimes we, the people who were born and raised in western countries, have no true imagination of what is really going on in the rest of the world.

Yes we do see it in the TV every day, but this is not the same as if you have see and feel it live. To understand what real poverty means. Somehow these pictures and article portray and summarize it very well. A while back as I was working for an service protection company in escrtberlin, my chef was a wealthy, but down to earth guy who was born decades ago in somalia, but lived long in europe. He told me how even today it feels strange for him to have a full access of clean food and water. How strange it is when people in western countries spend hours to debate about how to cut a cigarette or which sort of expensive wine is better, while others live from handful of rice. He taught me what it really means to stay with both feets on the ground, for what I am really thankful.

You couldn't see yourself sending any of your friends or family back home any of these postcards would you? On a serious note it makes you feel grateful living in developed country in America or Europe with no war in the streets, political corruption armed force corruption and anything else that make these countries what they are, I pray for all the victims.
Printed carrier bags

Some powerful photography here which makes you sit up and take notice. Can be more powerfull than a 3,000 word analysis

Each single country is going to suffer crisis in coming years. You can see what Europe was going through and now its Greece and Italy..

naples hotels

It was really depressing to see that the majority of the states on this list were African. I spend sometime trying to defend the race against racist statements that are made mostly by the European, but when things like this pop up, its hard to refutiate them. Oh well, I'll go hang myself now

Someone, whoever it is in a high level of government surely must see what is happening on the ground floor, ie to those poor kids in the picture. James

That is really too bad. It's hard to know what to do to help these countries.

I remember the early 80s when Zimbabwe was actually the bread winner and shining example for the entire African Continent.

Here he was, Robert Mugabe, a freedom fighter transcended into statesman!

Bob Marley even graced this country and sang a Song about independence and freedom from oppression from the Colonialists!

Somehow that seems to have been a pipe dream!

Demented, deluded and very paranoid, it became clear early on that this so called statesman was no gentleman at all.

Having connived with Lord Somes of Her Royal Majesty's crown to become the 1st black Prime Minister of a liberated country, Mugabe soon became a henchman, silencing the Mandebele whose Zipra forces were the real cause for peace and independence in the first place, then assigning himself total power over all who lived...

The story is too long and very heartbreaking to write in this manner.. Education and all scholarships for high school seniors soon dried up.
All Corporate companies became subject to nationalization... and with an army loyal only to him, Mugabe soon started paying off those with authority in the Military, and with enough US Dollars to fill the Pyramids of Giza, Zimbabwe soon became a fiefdom, ruled by a band of merry thieves, distributing wealth from all the Gold mines in Zimbabwe, among themselves.

Classic tale of greed really, hardly worth it's weight in salt!

The population is starving, terrified and without ideas... all the young have emigrated for economic reasons.... this is not a country likely to be free any time soon... if not ever!

It all boils down to humans' stupidity and greed. Looking at some the kids in these pictures makes me guilty that I just purchased hugo boss perfumes and versace bright crystal for my daughter as a birthday gift. Oh well, I'll remind her how lucky shes is when I give them to her, and never take our freedom and rights for granted.

Well done your photo essay vividly shows some of the most violent countries and tragic events of 2011. Makes you take notice.

Most of the countries mentioned here had some deep involvement with the US? The nations here have very complex problems with very basic needs and having other nations fix their problems is very near to the impossible. Wish it were easy to write up a solution using smart pens, but internal change has to come hand in hand with the international community's commitment.

The ugly truth reveals itself. A country full of gold and minerals like the Democratic Republic of the Congo, could be one of the strongest countries in the world. Instead, they choose to ignore their good fortune, and peruse terror and war. In these third world countries an average of 48 women are raped every hour! These poor women live in fear and terror with men of no education or control. They are prisoners in their own country and conceiving babies with no help or a partner to support them. In a western world country most women are trying to get pregnant desperately using in vitro fertilization, most with loving and caring partners. The irony is actually ridicules. I guess the saying the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence makes sense here, but for what price?

This is a powerful reminder of how insulated I am living in the United States in a comfortable middle class lifestyle. I do not know fear like so many in the world. I have never known hunger or pain like so many. Hardship for me is not getting some of my wants, not lacking basic needs. I can see why the US goes into countries to try to right these wrongs, but is mobilizing our military troops really helping the situation or the right answer? I don't know. THere are not easy solutions to these problems. www.lquillin.com

Seeing these images reminds me of how thankful I am to be an American, not that we don't have problems of our own, but nonetheless I am grateful to have relative amounts of security.

Not only is what is shown here hard to stomach, it really makes me want to reach out and contribute something in someway. I just need to learn a little more about what's actually happening around the world and what I can do to help many of these poor children.

Robert (aka "The Flight Simulator Mac Guy")

These pictures are harrowing and inspiring at the same time. It reminds you how lucky you are and to appreciate what you have. Hopefully, images like this will shatter the veil that blinds western society to the ailments of those leading much harder lives than ourselves.

This is an amazing photo gallery that certainly baffled me as I went through the list. I did find something very interesting at ThinkOnThat.com -- Essentially the harvesting and farming of insects commercially for food sources in many of these countries is a lot more efficient and cheaper than actual mammalian meat production. Is there room to stave of starvation by commercially farming insects as food? I'm not sure but it seems like an interesting prospect. Hope you enjoy. Cheers!

Having travelled to many places and seeing so many diverse ranges of cultures as a consultant, the imagery in the gallery was just breath-taking and thought-provoking. Often we forget how much of a bubble we live in here in the western world (at least I do) and to see images like ones above make you realize just how lucky we are - to not have military/police holding rifles and guns on every corner. The freedoms we have are something I will never forget and will never take for granted.

Tavis Yeung - vancouverseoconsultant

I believe the facts have been skewed a bit in the post about colonialism. East Africa the tourist areas the Africans speak English as well as their native language. Once you get into the bush it is very difficult to find an English speaking community. Few speak English and all are very self sufficient. Holding on to their ancestral rituals and way of life.
I have made many visits to the bush and finding English speaking guides come at a premium. The rio sfr country is beautiful the people are graceful and I will be back as soon as I can.