“The perceived or actual risk of sovereign non-payment continues to be an issue in countries across the globe,” said Beverley Marsden, associate director of Aon Risk Solutions' Crisis Management Practice, in a statement. “For example, we have seen 13 island nations move into a higher risk category this year because of the effect of a decline in tourism on their economy.”

She noted that the financial crisis impacted the economies of nations with traditionally low levels of risk and made Iceland the first Western European country to be downgraded to medium.

“This year's map also highlights the continued emergence of several markets in Africa, such as Ghana, Gabon and Nigeria, where more international trade and investment is occurring, leading to a greater need for political risk insurance cover,” she observed.

“There is good news, too. Over the past five years, the Aon Political Risk Map has seen a nearly 30 percent increase in the number of countries in the middle of the risk rankings—the medium low to medium high categories—as these countries have become more active in the world economy and their prosperity has increased,” she noted.