Vietnam has jumped 24 places to rank eleventh among 67 countries throughout the world offering the best living conditions for foreigners, according to a survey by InterNations. Vietnam, Uganda and Finland are the biggest winners in this year’s survey.

Last year Vietnam only came in 35th place out of 64 countries, but it recorded an astounding rise in 2016 with the Working Abroad Index jumping from 36th to 12th place and the Ease of Settling In Index from 35th to 29th.

Only 13% of expats in Vietnam were completely satisfied with their work-life balance in 2015, but in 2016 almost one in five (19%) is, according to the survey’s findings.

Expats in Vietnam are also more satisfied with their jobs in general, with about six in ten (61%) saying they are generally content in their jobs in 2015, and almost three-quarters (74%) stating the same in 2016.

InterNations says expats in Vietnam are very pleased with the friendly nature of the local residents this year, as the percentage of respondents that rate the general friendliness of the population positively has risen by ten percentage points, from 74% to 84%.

In addition, more than two in five regard friendliness towards foreign residents very good, compared with one in three in 2015.

It also seems to be easier to make local friends this year, with 63% generally agreeing that this is easy to do. In 2015, fewer than half were of this opinion.

Nhan Dan