Nigerians are getting happier — according to world happiness index

Nigerians are happier than they were between 2014 and 2016, according to the World Happiness Report released by the United Nations on Wednesday.

The World Happiness Report measures “subjective well-being” – how happy the people are, and why.

The UN agency had ranked Nigerians the 95th happiest people in the world in 2017, based on its statistics gathered between 2014 and 2016.

But in its latest report, which ranked 156 countries by their happiness levels, and 117 countries by the happiness of their immigrants, Nigeria moved four places up, bringing it to the 91st position.

Finland is at the top of both rankings, having moved from its fifth position in 2017 to topple Norway, while Burundi ranked last.

The US came in at 18th position, down from 14th place in 2017, while Britain ranked 19th and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), 20th.

According to the report, “The overall rankings of country happiness are based on the pooled results from Gallup World Poll surveys from 2015-2017, and show both change and stability.

“There is a new top ranking country, Finland, but the top ten positions are held by the same countries as in the last two years, although with some swapping of places.

“Four different countries have held the top spot in the four most recent reports- Denmark, Switzerland, Norway and now Finland.”

Mauritius, ranked 55th, is the happiest African country.

The report listed obesity, the opioid crisis, and depression as three emerging health problems that threaten happiness, adding that “the evidence and discussion are focused on the United States, where the prevalence of all three problems has been growing faster and further than in most other countries.”

The report also said migrating to another country provides for many people a major opportunity to obtain a happier life, especially to countries that accept them.

“Many migrants will surely experience considerable happiness gains, particularly those who meet basic subsistence needs by migrating, as basic needs such as economic security and safety are vital conditions for happiness,” it read.