With a score of 7.82 out of 10, Finland, the Nordic country of 5.5 million inhabitants, has been named the "happiest country in the world" for the fifth year in a row.
It is ahead of Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland and the Netherlands in an unchanged top of the ranking and dominated by European and Northern European countries.
As for France, it has reached its best ranking since it exists...
“The three strongest increases were in Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania.
The biggest setbacks in Lebanon, Venezuela and Afghanistan”, according to the “World Happiness Report”, an annual study sponsored by the United Nations launched a decade ago.
Lebanon, shaken by unrest and a serious economic crisis, thus falls to the penultimate place, with 2.95 points, behind Zimbabwe and just ahead of Afghanistan, dead last again this year with a score of 2, 40.
Russia drops to 80th place
To establish this ranking, this study has mainly used since 2012 Gallup polls asking residents their own level of happiness, crossed with GDP and assessments concerning the level of solidarity, individual freedom and corruption, to arrive at an overall score.
Germany and Canada drop one rank to 14th and 15th place respectively, just ahead of the United States (16th, +3), according to the official ranking of around 150 countries, which weights data from the last three years.
And France?
Even if it gains a place and reaches “its best ranking since the study exists”, the country is in 20th position.
Among the other major powers, Brazil is in 38th position (-3), Japan 54th (+ 2).
Even though this study was carried out before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia fell to 80th place by losing four places.
China jumped 12 ranks to 72nd position.
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"The lesson of the World Happiness Report in recent years is that social solidarity, generosity between people and honesty in government are crucial for well-being," commented one of the co-authors, Jeffrey Sachs, adding that " world leaders should take this into account.
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