South Africa has been ranked as one of the friendliest countries in the world, garnering a score of 34.63 out of 40 agreeableness aspects of the big 5 friendly personalities. South Africa is one of the most iconic countries on the continent, known for its elegant and lush national parks inhabited by a variety of wildlife, which attract millions of tourists every year.
If you are looking to adventure the world, study abroad, or migrate, then your journey ought to start in a country diversified by a mixture of African, European, and Asian tapestries of culture in the southern hemisphere of the great African continent.
One of the most outstanding beacons globally desired by the upcoming leaders is the late Nelson Mandela, who served 27 years of imprisonment for standing against the apartheid system that sought to segregate South Africans based on skin colour. He later became the first black president in 1994, exponentially flipping the murky racist system into a convergently united, loving, borderless, and welcoming nation for all.
A scientific study by Remitly on the “Big 5 Personality Test” based on the “agreeableness” trait sought to find out how 3000 participants from about 27 countries harmoniously express their perspectives about other nationals. The study asked questions on a score of 1 to 40, with highest score stood out as the friendliest and the least less friendly.
The study findings ranked Greece and Croatia as the second and third most friendly nations, with scores of 33.71 and 33.50, respectively. Europe took the lead as the most friendly continent, with a total of 19 countries featured on the list. Japan is the only Asian-friendly country with a score of 32.33 in the 14th position, followed by the United States at 15th and the least friendly nation on the North American continent with a score of 32.31.
In the first half of 2023, South Africa recorded a staggering 400 million tourists, representing a significant rebound from 2.3 million visitors between January and June 2022. The outbreak of COVID-19 saw a rapid scale-down on the tourism sector and was one of the worst ever recorded in the 21st century.
Out of the total arrivals in the same period, a record 79.9 percent were from African countries, a significant growth compared to the first half of 2022. While Africa still remains the biggest South African tourism market, it also achieved a plethora of arrivals from outside the continent, including Australia and New Zealand, topping the list with 50,882 visitors compared to 21,108 in 2022 in the same period.
The country also saw record high arrivals of 99.5 percent from Asian countries and 66.81% from European countries compared to the first half of 2022. A significant increase in tourist were also recorded from North and South America and the Middle East. South Africa, being the most friendly country on the black continent and the world at large, is an aspect of possibility for the rest of the countries. The table below provides the 10 most-rated countries and ranks.
