Namibia’s Brave Warriors were the biggest climbers in Africa on the latest FIFA rankings released on Tuesday as they shot up 17 places to 117 in the world.
In the period under review they beat Kenya 1-0 at home in a World Cup qualifying match and drew 0-0 against Liberia at home in a African Cup of Nations qualifier.
Namibia are now ranked eighth in the SADC region, which is headed by the African champions Zambia, who have a world ranking of 41.
They are followed by South Africa (world ranking of 68), Angola (86), Malawi (93), Zimbabwe (100), Mozambique (107) and Botswana (113).
The Ivory Coast, which is ranked 16th in the world, remains the top ranked African nation.
They are followed by Ghana, with a world ranking of 33, Algeria (35), Libya (39), Mali (40), Zambia (41), Egypt (42), Tunisia (43), Gabon (45), Nigeria (58) and Cameroon (59).
The European and world champions Spain remain at number one, followed by Germany, Uruguay, England and Portugal. The rest of the top ten nations consist of Italy, Argentina, the Netherlands, Croatia and Denmark.
Brazil slump to 11th
Reuters meanwhile reports that Brazil slumped to 11th in the FIFA rankings, their lowest ever position, while tiny Tahiti surged 41 places after their astonishing win at the Oceania Nations Cup.
Performances at Euro 2012 had an impact on places, with winners Spain staying top, semi-finalists Germany moving up a spot to second and runners-up Italy jumped from 12th to sixth.
Moving in the opposite direction, Netherlands slumped from fourth to eighth after their first-round exit at Euro 2012.
Brazil dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since the rankings began in 1993 following defeats to Mexico and Argentina in friendlies in the last month.
Under the complex system used to calculate the rankings, 2014 World Cup hosts Brazil have also suffered by having not played any competitive internationals since last year's Copa America when they went out in the quarter-finals.
Uruguay remained the highest-ranked South American side at third followed by Argentina in seventh. Africa's highest team are Ivory Coast in 16th.
Tahiti's shock win at the Oceania Nations Cup lifted them 41 places to 138th though they are still short of their record 111th ranking they achieved in 2002.