http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=42356

Influential British magazine The Economist has placed Malta in 15th place on the democratic leaderboard, outpacing powerhouses such as the United States and the United Kingdom.

The report The World in 2007 said that almost half the countries in the world can be classified as being democratic, but only 28 countries can be described as true democracies.

These 28 feature the most developed nations of the world. The report was drafted on five criteria; electoral process and pluralism, functioning of government, political participation, political culture, and civil liberties, with a maximum of 10 points per each category.

Based on these categories, The Economist classified the countries into four stages of democracy; full democracy, 28 countries; flawed democracy, 54; hybrid democracy, 30; and authoritarian regime, 55.

The Economist stated that despite the recent wave of democratisation in the world, only 13 per cent of the global population are considered to live in a true democratic country, while on the flipside, some 40 per cent still live under authoritarian or totalitarian regimes.

Sweden is the most democratic country, according to the research, with 9.88 average score.