This Open Doors’ 2022 World Watch List (2021 rankings in brackets).

Read the article analysing this year’s list here.

Read more about trends of persecution last year.

1. Afghanistan (2)

2. North Korea (1)

3. Somalia (3)

4. Libya (4)

5. Yemen (7)

6. Eritrea (6)

7. Nigeria (9)

8. Pakistan (5)

9. Iran (8)

10. India (10)

11. Saudi Arabia (14)

12. Myanmar (18)

13. Sudan (13)

14. Iraq (11)

15. Syria (12)

16. Maldives (15)

17. China (17)

18. Qatar (29)

19. Vietnam (19)

20. Egypt (16)

21. Uzbekistan (21)

22. Algeria (24)

23. Mauritania (20)

24. Mali (28)

25. Turkmenistan (23)

26. Laos (22)

27. Morocco (27)

28. Indonesia (47)

29. Bangladesh (31)

30. Colombia (30)

31. Central African Republic (35)

32. Burkina Faso (32)

33. Niger (54)

34. Bhutan (43)

35. Tunisia (26)

36. Oman (44)

37. Cuba (51)

38. Ethiopia (36)

39. Jordan (38)

40. Congo DR (DRC) (40)

41. Mozambique (45)

42. Turkey (25)

43. Mexico (37)

44. Cameroon (42)

45. Tajikistan (33)

46. Brunei (39)

47. Kazakhstan (41)

48. Nepal (34)

49. Kuwait (48)

50. Malaysia (46)

Beyond the top 50, five more countries are also scored ‘very high’. Overall, 76 countries -two more (Israel and Venezuela) than the previous year - showed extreme, very high or high levels of persecution and discrimination, affecting at least one in every seven Christians worldwide.

[photo_footer] Click on the image to see full-sized image. / WWL 2022, Open Doors. [/photo_footer] 

How many Christians are persecuted?

Persecution of Christians has continued to intensify globally, reaching the highest levels since the list began nearly 30 years ago.

- More than 360 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.

- This number represents one in seven Christians worldwide, up from one in eight in the 2021 list.

About the WWL and how the figures are collected

The first annual WWL was recorded in January 1993. Countries’ overall persecution scores are an amalgamation of six different scores: for violence levels, along with persecution in private life, family life, community life, civic life and of church communities.

This year’s list covers the period 1 Oct 2020 - 30 Sept 2021.

Released at the beginning of each year, the list uses extensive research, data from Open Doors field workers, external experts and persecution analysts to quantify and analyse persecution worldwide. It is certified by the International Institute for Religious Freedom.

Covid-19 restrictions necessitated adaptations in on-ground data collection. With additional digital tools and experts’ research, Open Doors believes the WWL 2022 scoring, and analysis maintains its quality and reliability.