Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Forward Thinking

Which countries are riskiest?

Known as the home to bands of seafaring pirates, Somalia now holds the dubious title of the riskiest country in which to conduct business and manage supply chains.

Known as the home to bands of seafaring pirates, Somalia now holds the dubious title of the riskiest country in which to conduct business and manage supply chains. Maplecroft, a United Kingdom-based risk-analysis firm, conferred that designation on Somalia on the basis of its 2009 Global Risks Index, which assessed 163 nations on 26 risk factors. Analysts evaluated such areas as a country's macroeconomics, security, governance, resources, diseases, climate change, and societal resilience.

Located on the horn of Africa, Somalia was rated an extreme risk in 16 out of the 26 criteria. In fact, eight of the 10 riskiest countries on Maplecroft's list lie on the African continent. "With poor public infrastructure, weaker governance, less available health care, the burden of malnutrition, and other communicable diseases, the countries of sub-Saharan and central Africa are the worst-positioned to address exogenous global risks," analysts said.


In addition to Somalia, said Maplecroft Chief Executive Alyson Warhurst, Nigeria, Sudan, the democratic Republic of the Congo, and Zimbabwe stand out as places where the supply chains of companies working in the extractive and commodities industries are most exposed to risk. To safely continue doing business in such dangerous locales, she said, companies need to put in place policies, procedures, and contingency planning for change and uncertainty.

Maplecroft designed its risk index for multinational organizations that are confronted by complex global risks traditionally seen as being external to business. The index helps companies detect and manage specific areas of high risk in international supply chains and operations.

The top 10 riskiest countries
1. Somalia
2. Sudan
3. Democratic Republic of the Congo
4. Chad
5. Afghanistan
6. Ethiopia
7. Myanmar
8. Nigeria
9. Burundi
10. Zimbabwe

Source: Maplecroft Global Risks Report, 2009

Recent

More Stories

september import forecast NRF chart

Ports see import rush as dockworker strike looms

Container imports at U.S. ports are seeing another busy month as retailers and manufacturers hustle to get their orders into the country ahead of a potential labor strike that could stop operations at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports as soon as October 1.

Less than two weeks from now, the existing contract between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance covering East and Gulf Coast ports is set to expire. With negotiations hung up on issues like wages and automation, the ILA has threatened to put its 85,000 members on strike if a new contract is not reached by then, prompting business groups like the National Retail Federation (NRF) to call for both sides to reach an agreement.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

containers stacked on ship

CIG: Container ship fires could be reduced by better data

A coalition of freight transport and cargo handling organizations is calling on countries to honor their existing resolutions to report the results of national container inspection programs, and for the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to publish those results.

Those two steps would help improve safety in the carriage of goods by sea, according to the Cargo Integrity Group (CIG), which is a is a partnership of industry associations seeking to raise awareness and greater uptake of the IMO/ILO/UNECE Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (2014) – often referred to as CTU Code.

Keep ReadingShow less
retail workers fulfilling orders

NRF: Retail sales continued to grow in August

Retail sales continued to grow in August, fueled by rising wages amid falling inflation, according to a National Retail Federation (NRF) analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data released yesterday.

By the numbers, overall retail sales in August were up 0.1% seasonally adjusted month over month and up 2.1% unadjusted year over year. That compared with increases of 1.1% month over month and 2.9% year over year in July.

Keep ReadingShow less
undersea fiberoptic cable

U.S., U.K., and Australia boost supply chain defenses

The U.S., U.K., and Australia will strengthen supply chain resiliency by sharing data and taking joint actions under the terms of a pact signed last week, the three nations said.

The agreement creates a “Supply Chain Resilience Cooperation Group” designed to build resilience in priority supply chains and to enhance the members’ mutual ability to identify and address risks, threats, and disruptions, according to the U.K.’s Department for Business and Trade.

Keep ReadingShow less
A warehouse worker in an orange vest looks at a tablet in front of racks piled with boxes.

MRO experts call for greater focus on business risks

A new survey finds a disconnect in organizations’ approach to maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO), as specialists call for greater focus than executives are providing, according to a report from Verusen, a provider of inventory optimization software.

Nearly three-quarters (71%) of the 250 procurement and operations leaders surveyed think MRO procurement/operations should be treated as a strategic initiative for continuous improvement and a potential innovation source. However, just over half (58%) of respondents note that MRO procurement/operations are treated as strategic organizational initiatives.

Keep ReadingShow less