‘World Leaders’. Has a ring to it, doesn’t it? Well, it is great when it is about something good like like growth or economy. But then, there are negative factors as well. Factors that actually devalue the nation’s pride or perhaps hurt its reputation on a global scale. With factors like terrorism, murders and natural disasters, there is so much you can’t control. And there are countries which have the top spot in all these things.

Here are 11 countries that lead the world in things they really don’t want to:

1. Leader in natural disasters: Philippines

With a population of over a 100 million, Philippines has faced several natural disasters that has led to millions becoming homeless. Over 21 cities in the country make the natural disaster risk list. Other countries like China, Bangladesh and Japan also make the list of the top few.

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2. Leader in highest murder rate: Honduras

More than 90 people in every 1,00,000 are killed in Honduras each year. Annually, at least more than 7,000 people are murdered. The next in list is Venezuela, where the murder rate is almost half. Throws into perspective how dangerous Honduras really is.

cnn

3. Leader in suicides: South Korea (among developed countries) and Guyana (overall)

South Korea has a suicide rate of around 29 and experiences the highest number of suicides amongst developed countries. The former South Korean President, Roh Moo-hyun, jumped to his death as well. The reason for such a high number of suicides is cited to be death of celebs.

nytimes

Guyana is said to have a suicide rate of just above 44. This means that 44 people in 1,00,000 commit suicide annually. Poverty, easy availability to extremely harmless drugs and other factors contribute to these suicides. The suicide rate of Guyana is 4 times higher than the global average suicide rate.

nydailynews

4. Leader in the most devalued currency: Zimbabwe

Value of currency does not depend upon the exchange rate. Zimbabwe’s pathetic economic situation has been well publicized. The inflation rate has cost regular items to be priced in millions and there was a time, a few years ago, when one USD was worth 642,371,437,695,221,000 ZWD. Imagine that! People are starving there as well. An example of the horrid conditions can be seen in the picture below where people are eating an elephant.

dailymail.co.uk

5. Leader in 1st day infant mortality rate in developed countries: USA

Among so many other things, this supposedly great nation has great problems as well. The first day infant mortality rate is amazingly high. More than 11,000 babies die within 24 hours of birth every year.

occupy.com

6. Highest illiteracy rate in the world: Burkina Faso

Only 36% of the adults in the country are literate. Located in West Africa, there is clearly a shortage of resources in the country to educate its youth. Illiteracy of such a high level leads to other growth factors being diminished as well.

unesco

7. Leader in unemployment rate: Nauru

The smallest island nation in the world has the largest percentage of its population unemployed. It is sad to know that once, a few decades ago, it was one of the richest countries in the world. Zimbabwe can be up there too but 84% of its population is engaged in informal employment, so the exact number is difficult to determine.

ibtimes

8. Leader in homophobia: Nigeria

The laws are so stringent, that display of any homosexual activities or strong affection towards the same sex can lead to imprisonment of up to 14 years. More than 90% of the population of this country is against homosexuality.

cnn

9. Leader in being affected by terrorism: Iraq

Iraq has the highest score when it comes to incidents related to terrorism occurring in a country. Factors like number of incidents, fatalities, property damage and injuries are considered before devising the list of countries worst affected by terrorism. Iran has a perfect score of 10. India is number 6 on the list.

washingtontimes

10. Leader in incarceration rate: USA

The total number of people going to prison in 1,00,000 is 707 for the main land. Although Seychelles’ number is more than 800, the US still tops the charts as it also includes prisoners from the Virgin Islands of America like Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico etc.

huffingtonpost

11. Leader in political corruption: Somalia

Somalia has the worst corruption score in the world. A country where pirates can seize ships at will, the al-Shabaab movement has been terrorizing the populous and the government is just ineffective, although it specializes in stealing from the refugees and even its own people. Somalia is by far the most unstable country on the planet.

ibtimes