United Nations SDSN publishes “World Happiness Report 2021”

United Nations SDSN publishes “World Happiness Report 2021”

Issued by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, World Happiness Report 2021 has been released.

What is UN SDNS?

The UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) was set up in 2012 under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General. It is guided by a Leadership Council, which brings together global sustainable development leaders from all regions and all sectors, including civil society, public, and private sectors.

What is the Aim of UN SDNS?

United Nations SDSN aims to accelerate joint learning and help to overcome the separation of technical and policy work by promoting integrated approaches to the interconnected economic, social, and environmental challenges confronting the world.

What is The World Happiness Report?

The World Happiness Report is an annual report published by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). The report ranks countries by how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be.

What are the parameters of World Happiness Report?

There are three parameters used to measures the ranks of countries on the basis of World Happiness Report, which are-

• Life Evaluations: Under this, people were asked to evaluate their current life using the image of a ladder. The best possible life for them is rated at 10 and the worst possible at 0.
• Positive Emotions:Under this, respondents were asked whether they smiled or laughed a lot the previous day. An affirmative response is coded as a 1 while a negative response is coded as 0.
• Negative Emotions: Under this, people were asked whether they have experienced negative emotions such as worry, sadness, and anger a lot on the same day.

Key Findings of the Report:

The World Happiness Report 2021 focuses on the effects of COVID-19 and how people all over the world have fared.

India has been ranked 139 out of 149 countries in the World Happiness Report 2021. In 2020, India was ranked 144 out of 156 countries.

Finland ranked as the happiest country in the world for the fourth consecutive year.

It was followed by Iceland, Denmark, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, and Norway.

Afghanistan(149) is the most unhappy country. Zimbabwe (148), Rwanda (147), Botswana (146), and Lesotho (145) followed it.