The Finns are once again the happiest people in the world, and the Belgians are two places ahead | outside

The top ten also consists of residents of Iceland, Israel, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Luxembourg and New Zealand. After losing two places last year, Belgium will again be in 17th place in 2023. We are better than France (21) and the United Kingdom (19), but worse than the Netherlands (5) and Germany (16). The top 20 is closed by Lithuania, which has risen more than 30 places since 2017.

The World Happiness Report is compiled annually by scientists from the United States, based on surveys conducted by Gallup. Over a period of three years, it looks at how citizens feel, the social support they receive for one another, the corruption within their government, their physical and mental health and GDP per capita.

The researchers report that people’s happiness has proven “remarkable resilience” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Global averages for the last three years studied, from 2020 to 2022, are just as high as averages for the period from 2017 to 2019 before the pandemic.

War-torn Afghanistan and Lebanon emerged as the two most unlucky countries in the survey.

Russia ranks 70th this year, and Ukraine 92nd. Well-being in Ukraine has taken a hit, according to the report, but “life ratings remained higher in September 2022 than in the aftermath of the 2014 annexation.” According to the researchers, this is “due to a stronger sense of common purpose, benevolence and confidence in the Ukrainian leadership.”

Trust in both countries has grown in 2022. Much more in Ukraine than in Russia, according to the report. Ukrainian support for the leadership in Russia has dropped to zero.