NZ eighth most positive country in the world

New Zealand was lauded for its creation of a 620,000sq km ocean sanctuary in the Kermadec region. Photo / iStock

New Zealand has been ranked the eighth most positive country in the world, in a list that measures the positive contribution and good news output of each nation.

The country ranked high in democratic and peaceful indexes this year, and that was noted as one contributor to New Zealand's high ranking in the 2015 most positive countries list.

New Zealand did not make it into the top 10 last year.

Switzerland topped the list in 2015, with Sweden, China, England, Australia, Germany and the US taking out the top spots.

The list rates the positive developments and news stories generated by that country across fields such as business development, peace projects, sports achievements, and scientific and environmental innovation.

It's collated by non-profit Australian organisation Daily Positive, which aims to promote good news stories. Independent panel members, volunteer journalists, and members of the public score each nation out of 10 to create the ranking.

New Zealand was lauded for its creation of a 620,000sq km ocean sanctuary in the Kermadec region, which will be "one of the world's most significant fully protected ecosystems", according to Daily Positive, or D+.

It also cited the Government returning a budget surplus for the first time since 2008.
Switzerland took the top spot, jumping from fourth last year, with its "consistent display of competitiveness in nurturing innovation and talent".

"Such sincere support helped projects like the solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse 2 or the Large Hadron Collider to go to a new high this year," Daily Positive said.

Daily Positive founder, Dr Arif Jubaer, said: "D+ World's Most Positive Countries is in its fifth year and this year it has been celebrated with more enthusiasm and excitement indicating global citizens are more eager than ever before to have access to positive news. It is one of the biggest wake-up calls for world media to give positive news a chance to spread."

The top 10 World's Most Positive Countries for 2015, with respective ranking points:

1. Switzerland|556
2. Sweden|533
3. China|517
4. England|502
5. Australia|491
6. Germany|479
7. USA|462
8. New Zealand|449
9. Singapore|431
10. Norway|424

Source: Daily Positive