The UAE has been ranked as the safest country in the world according to an announcement made by officials on Sunday, March 17.

The results of a recent survey detailed that an impressive, 96.1% of UAE residents said they felt safe enough to walk outdoors at night.

According to a report in the Gulf News, the announcement was made during the 12th International Symposium for Police Best Practices and was revealed by HE Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Deputy Chairman of Police and Public Security in Dubai.

He was quoted as saying, “The survey showed that 96.1 per cent of people feel safe and secure in the country,”

He added on stating that “the UAE’s policies and strategies were behind the achievement to make the country the safest in the world,”

Singapore came in second with 94 per cent of people feeling safe and secure.

It’s the second time Dubai has ranked highly in a global safety ranking, after a study by Which? Travel voted the UAE the second safest country to visit around the globe.

Beaten only by Iceland, which came out on top, the UAE was ranked safer than other leading travel destinations including Spain, Australia and the United States.

The study rated the world’s top 20 holiday destinations using statistics collated by the World Economic Fund, the World Risk Report, NHS Fit for Travel website and the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) terrorism assessment risk to assess their overall safety.