• The World Happiness Report is a publication by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network. 
• It features articles and rankings of national happiness, relying on respondent ratings of their own lives. 
• The report correlates these ratings with various life factors to assess quality of life. 
• It offers a comprehensive view of global data on happiness, and reviews evidence from the emerging field of happiness science.

About the Report

• The World Happiness Report assesses countries using various criteria, including real GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.
• It relies on two key principles: measuring happiness or life evaluation through opinion surveys and identifying determinants of well-being across nations.
• This happiness study utilizes questions from the Gallup World Poll to rank countries globally, correlating results with factors like GDP and social security.
• March 20 holds significance as World Happiness Day, as designated by the UN General Assembly in 2012.
• The report ranks 156 countries based on citizens' self-perceived happiness.
• The 2020 Report pioneered the ranking of cities worldwide according to subjective well-being, investigating how social, urban, and natural environments collectively impact happiness.

World Happiness Report 2023

The UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) recently released the 11th edition of the World Happiness Report.

Top Performers:

• Finland maintains its position as the happiest country globally for the sixth consecutive year. Nordic countries such as Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden, among others, dominate the top spots. Israel stands out, securing the fourth position on the index.

Worst Performers:

• The unhappiest countries include Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, ranking last, with Lebanon, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone, and the Democratic Republic of Congo joining at the bottom.
• War-scarred Afghanistan, holding the bottom spot since 2020, has seen its humanitarian crisis deepen since the Taliban's takeover in 2021 following the US-led military withdrawal.

India & its neighbors:

• India's rank in the World Happiness Report has improved from 136 in 2022 to 126 this year. However, it remains far below its neighbors like Sri Lanka (63), China (74), and Pakistan (108).

Rising Resilience Around the World:

• Between 2020 and 2022, the world witnessed a remarkable increase in resilience, as stated by the SDSN report. Notable events during this period were the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The report highlights a rise in global benevolence during these crises, with stronger social connections being built. Benevolent acts were 25 percent more common worldwide in 2022 compared to before the pandemic.

World Happiness Index Report 2022

• Finland maintains its position as the world's happiest nation for the third consecutive year.
• The Happiness Index from the World Happiness Report (WHR) reveals a declining rank for India over time.
• In the 2022 World Happiness Report, India ranked 136th among 146 countries, compared to 139th among 149 countries in 2021.
• Afghanistan holds the title of the unhappiest nation, closely followed by Lebanon.
• Nordic states dominate the top 10, alongside countries like Switzerland, New Zealand, and Austria.

United Nations Sustainable Development Solution Network (UN SDSN)

• The UN SDSN has been active since 2012 under the UN Secretary-General's direction.
• It harnesses global scientific and technological expertise to advance practical solutions for sustainable development, encompassing the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Agreement.
• The goal is to accelerate joint learning and advocate for integrated approaches to tackle the interconnected economic, social, and environmental challenges worldwide.
• SDSN collaborates closely with UN agencies, multilateral financing institutions, the private sector, and civil society.
• Its organization and governance aim to facilitate the involvement of numerous leaders from all regions and diverse backgrounds in network development.
• SDSN maintains a small secretariat with offices in New York, New Delhi, and Paris.