Three African countries: Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa have earned spots among the world’s top-ranked countries in the 2024 Best Countries Rankings, published by U.S. News & World Report in collaboration with the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and global marketing firm WPP.

According to the report, Egypt leads the continent at 35th globally, followed by Morocco at 39th and South Africa at 40th.

The rankings are determined not by economic statistics alone but by global perceptions.

Over 17,000 people—including business decision-makers, university-educated elites, and general citizens—evaluated 87 countries across 73 different attributes, grouped into ten key categories: Adventure, Agility, Cultural Influence, Entrepreneurship, Heritage, Movers, Open for Business, Power, Quality of Life, and Social Purpose.

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To qualify for inclusion, countries needed to meet certain thresholds in GDP, tourism, and foreign direct investment (FDI). Final scores were correlated with GDP per capita (PPP), providing a snapshot of a nation’s perceived prosperity and global standing.

“This project is based on a proprietary perceptions survey that reaches thousands of citizens across the globe,” said Elliott Davis, a reporter for U.S. News & World Report.

“How a nation is viewed by others can play a big role in its global standing.”

Switzerland took the top spot for the third consecutive year, praised for its stability, entrepreneurship, and high quality of life.

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“It’s no surprise that a stable, consistent country like Switzerland would top our rankings seven times in nine years,” Davis added.

The United States made its highest-ever appearance in the rankings at third, driven by improvements in its “Open for Business” and “Movers” subrankings, while Japan claimed second place for its innovation, influence, and advanced economy.

Other noteworthy shifts included China, which rose to 16th, and Ukraine, which fell 12 places to 80th—the biggest drop in this year’s report.

Former UK Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has joined investment bank Goldman Sachs as a senior advisor, the company said in a statement on Tuesday.

Sunak, who was prime minister between October 2022 and July 2024, has returned to the bank where he began his career.

“I am excited to welcome Rishi back to Goldman Sachs in his new capacity as a Senior Advisor,” said Goldman Sachs chairman and chief executive David Solomon.

He will advise clients “on the macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape”, Solomon added.

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Sunak was the third UK prime minister to take office in 2022, following Liz Truss’s rapid demise and Boris Johnson’s resignation before that.

After he took office, Sunak faced criticism from political opponents over his vast family wealth and past career in investment funds, with some arguing that he was out of touch with the general population during a rampant cost-of-living crisis.

The Conservatives suffered a landslide defeat to Labour in July 2024, ending 14 years in power.

A hosepipe ban has been announced and will begin in parts of the United Kingdom (UK), specifically Yorkshire, from Friday, 11 July, following one of the driest springs the region has seen in over a century.

Yorkshire Water announced the temporary use ban (TUB) on Tuesday, stating that it will restrict the use of hosepipes for watering gardens, washing private vehicles, filling home pools, or cleaning outdoor areas.

The restrictions will stay in place until there’s “significant rainfall” in the region.

This year, the area recorded just 15cm of rain between February and June—less than half the usual amount. At the same time, demand for water has been higher, and reservoir levels have dropped to 55.8% capacity, which is more than a quarter below the normal level for this time of year.

“We need to take action now to help conserve water and protect Yorkshire’s environment. That means from Friday this week, people across Yorkshire will need to stop using their hosepipes to water their gardens, wash their cars or for any other activities.

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“Introducing these restrictions is not a decision we have taken lightly, and we’ve been doing everything we can to avoid having to put them in place,” Yorkshire Water’s director of water, Dave Kaye, said.

People can still water gardens or wash cars using a bucket or watering can. Businesses can use hosepipes if it’s part of their regular operations.

Continuing, Mr Kayen said the restrictions was to make the company has enough water for essential needs amidst higher demand.

“These restrictions are intended to make sure that we have enough supply for the essential needs of people across the region this year and next, as well as making sure we’re able to protect our local environment.”

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“With more dry weather forecast in the coming weeks, it is likely our stocks will continue to fall so we need to act now to maintain clean water supplies and long-term river health.

“Having restrictions in place also allows us to apply for drought permits from the Environment Agency, which means we can abstract more water from our rivers and reduce compensation flows out of our reservoirs so that we can continue to provide the water our customers rely on us for.

“The restrictions will come into effect on 11 July and will be in place until the region has seen significant rainfall to bring reservoirs and groundwater stocks back to where they need to be. This may last into the winter months, but we will lift the usage restrictions as soon as we are able.”

In a statement, Yorkshire Water said the ban will help the region’s reservoir levels recover and protect Yorkshire’s water resources throughout the summer months, following one of the driest springs on record and the region being in drought.

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“We’ve tried everything possible to avoid these restrictions, and despite our customers’ help to save water where they can and our efforts to manage water resources, including adding an extra 100 people to our leakage team and upgrading our infrastructure to reduce leaks and bursts, the dry weather and warmer-than-usual temperatures have increased demand,” the statement reads.

The Environment Agency officially declared a drought in Yorkshire on 12 June, after confirming the region had its driest spring in 132 years. It had previously announced drought conditions in northwest England in May.

This news comes ahead of a possible third heatwave expected next week. Temperatures could rise into the low 30s, with warm nights continuing through the period.