Algeria, Morocco safest Arab countries

Algeria and Morocco are part of a list of countries where citizens feel most secure and have the most confidence in their local police, according to a report released by the US research centre, Gallup.

The only Arab country to reach the top 10 of the safest countries was Algeria which came in seventh position, between Switzerland and Finland, with a score of 90.

Morocco scored 83 out of 100, ranking 43rd in the world, between Serbia and Estonia, and the third safest country in Africa after Rwanda and Algeria.

The study was conducted in 2016 with 136,000 people over the age of 15 in 135 countries around the world. More than 1,000 participants in each country had to answer four questions in interviews so that researchers could measure their sense of security and personal experiences of crime, law and order at home.

The questions included confidence in their local police, if they felt safe when they walked alone at night, if they had anything stolen or if someone in their family did in the last 12 months and finally if they were assaulted during the same period.

Read: Algerian Imams take to streets in protest at ‘aggression’ against them

According to the American centre, the answers to these questions are closely linked to the economic and social development measures of the country. For researchers, if the crime rate increases, social cohesion is undermined and the country’s economic performance falls.

The Middle East and North Africa region obtained a total score of 82 with a three point increase from the score reached in 2015, and ranks fifth after the United States.

Verdict in question

However, according to another international survey conducted online and published recently on Trip.com, Morocco was ranked as the second most dangerous country in the world for female tourists after Egypt.

According to the US State Department website, “aggressive begging, pickpockets and burglary remain a major problem in Morocco especially in tourist places.”

Supporting this, the American think tank, the Institute for Economy and Peace, placed Morocco in 75th position according to its global index of peace and in 90th position in the ranking on the performance of the police and the security forces in 127 different countries.

Morocco has seen an increase in clashes between police forces and protesters in the tense Rif region following weeks of protests for better investment and development in the region as well as better employment opportunities.