To get the answer to the most obvious question out of the way. Afghanistan leads the list of most dangerous countries in the world to visit in 2023, as identified by the medical and security specialist International SOS.
The 2023 Risk map
International SOS recently published its Risk Map 2023, where it assigns medical risk ratings based on a range of health risks and mitigating factors. For 2023, Syria was named the second-most dangerous destination to visit, followed by Ukraine, Mali and Iraq. Ukraine and Mali are new additions to the Risk Map 2023, the other mentioned countries have featured in forecasts for both 2021 and 2022.
Mali’s security risk has raised a red flag for many years, but Ukraine saw the biggest shift over the last 12 months from ‘medium’ to ‘extreme’ because of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of the country. Other countries whose security risk was also identified as ‘extreme’ include Central African Republic, Yemen, Somalia and South Sudan, as well as certain areas of Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Pakistan, Mozambique and Israel.
Mental health
International SOS medical director Dr Irene Lai emphasized the importance of addressing mental health issues within organizations operating in high-risk areas. “[They] must handle multiple physical and mental health issues to effectively maintain their Duty of Care responsibilities,” said Lai. Her suggestion is that organizations use all the tools they have at their disposal to make challenges more manageable.
For instance, the detail provided by the Risk Map can help decision-makers better protect their staff, gauging which locations are challenged with access to medical care, or are particularly vulnerable to mental health issues.
Dr Irene Lai, International SOS Medical Director
Safest Countries
Unsurprisingly Scandinavia dominates the top of the safest countries list. Norway was named as the safest destination, followed by Finland, Switzerland, Denmark and Iceland. Almost all of them were considered to have an Insignificant level of security risk in 2022.
However, Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection’ (BHTP) has created a different list of the Safest Places to Travel in 2023. This list places The Netherlands, Denmark and Iceland as the top three safest countries to visit in 2023. Also according to BHTP, many of the safest countries to visit in 2023 are located in Scandinavia and the rest of Europe. Their list has only four countries located outside of Europe, which are Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Arab Emirates.
