Rising inequality and corruption around the world are putting the recent spread of democracy in many countries at risk, the UN says in a new report.

Around the world, there is a growing sense that democracy has not delivered development

Sakiko Fukuda-Parr UN report author

Of 81 countries that have moved toward democracy in the past 20 years, the report says, only 47 are still considered full democracies with the necessary checks and balances on power.

The warning comes with the UN's 12th annual Human Development Report, which ranks 173 countries for their quality of life, using indicators such as life expectancy and income per person.

Norway again ranks first, followed by Sweden, Canada, Belgium, Australia and the United States - but the bottom of the chart is dominated by African countries.

Sierra Leone is last, and the bottom 24 countries are all in Africa.

The poor performance went hand-in-hand with a relapse in many places to authoritarian rule or conflict, especially in sub-Saharan African, where the report says that one in four countries saw the military intervene in politics.

"Around the world, there is a growing sense that democracy has not delivered development such as more jobs, schools, health care for ordinary people," said Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, the UN report's chief author.

Stability

But the report argues that moving toward democracy actually makes for more stable societies - rebutting an argument made by China, Pakistan and other countries that a slower shift to democracy is necessary to maintain order.

"The desire for stability often leads to the notion that non-democratic regimes hold out the prospect of greater public order and faster economic development," the report's author said.

"History and academic research provide no evidence that authoritarian regimes are better at promoting economic and social progress."

In addition, democratic countries are far less likely to go to war against each other, the report says.

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Top 15 countries:

HDI rank 2002	Life expectancy (years)	Infant mortality (per 1,000 live births)	GDP per capita ($)	Adult literacy (%)
1 Norway	78.5	4	29,918	99%*
2 Sweden	79.7	3	24,277	99%*
3 Canada	78.8	6	27,840	99%*
4 Belgium	78.4	6	27,178	99%*
5 Australia	78.9	6	25,693	99%*
6 United States	77	7	34,142	99%*
7 Iceland	79.2	4	29,581	99%*
8 Netherlands	78.1	5	25,657	99%*
9 Japan	81	4	26,755	99%*
10 Finland	77.6	4	24,996	99%*
11 Switzerland	78.9	3	28,789	99%*
12 France	78.6	4	24,223	99%*
13 UK	77.7	4	23,509	99%*
14 Denmark	76.2	6	27,627	99%*
15 Austria	78.1	4	26,765	99%*

* For Human Development Index a value of 99% was applied

Bottom 15 countries:

HDI rank 2002	Life expectancy (years)	Infant mortality (per 1,000 live births)	GDP per capita ($)	Adult literacy (%)
159 Guinea	47.5	112	1,982	41
160 Gambia	46.2	92	1,649	36.6
161 Angola	45.2	172	2,187	42
162 Rwanda	40.2	100	943	66.8
163 Malawi	40	117	615	60.1
164 Mali	51.5	142	797	41.5
165 Central African Republic	44.3	115	1,172	46.7
166 Chad	45.7	118	871	42.6
167 Guinea Bissau	44.8	132	755	38.5
168 Ethiopia	43.9	117	668	39.1
169 Burkina Faso	46.7	105	976	23.9
170 Mozambique	39.3	126	854	44
171 Burundi	46.7	114	591	48
172 Niger	45.2	159	746	15.9
173 Sierra Leone	38.9	180	490	36

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