Hong Kong grabs 20th spot in Asia's prosperity index

Find out which country beat it.

Asia and particularly Indonesia have seen the biggest increases in prosperity in the world since 2009, according to an international index which defines prosperity by measuring a country’s economic success and its wellbeing.

According to a release from the Legatum Institute, the annual Legatum Prosperity Index™ ranks 142 countries across eight categories: the Economy, Entrepreneurship & Opportunity; Governance; Education; Health; Safety & Security; Personal Freedom; and Social Capital.

The 2015 Index, published recently by the Legatum Institute, an international think tank based in London, shows that Indonesia has risen 21 places up the rankings since 2009, the biggest improvement of any country. This is largely thanks to the country’s strong economic performance over the past few years.

Indonesia rose 23 places in the Economy sub-index (now ranks 39th) and 14 places in the Entrepreneurship & Opportunity sub-index (now ranks 90th). As a result the number of Indonesians who feel satisfied with their living standards has increased from 63% to 71% in five years.

Here’s more from Legatum Institute:

The index also reveals that Asian countries perform well overall, but there is still great diversity across the region. Singapore (17th), Japan (19th), Hong Kong (20th) and Taiwan (21st) are best-performers in the region.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan (141st), Pakistan (130th), Cambodia (112th) and Bangladesh (103rd) are the worst-performers.

5 of the 10 most improved countries since 2009 are from Asia. Sri Lanka has risen 11 places on the Index and now ranks 61st. China has risen 9 places on the Index and now ranks 52nd. Both countries’ success is based on dramatic improvements in the Economy sub-index.

Singapore tops the Economy sub-index. The country has the second highest capital per worker of any country at $240,750 per worker. 47% of manufactured exports are high-tech and 29% of total exports come from the ICT sector—the third highest in the world.