The 10 happiest countries in the world, according to the UN

Experts from the United Nations (UN) have produced a document in which different variables related to the well-being and development of the different countries of the world are measured. This has been called World Happiness Report 2015, has been underway since 2012 and includes a total of 158 countries.

The wellness (or perception of well-being) of the citizens of a country is recognized as a measure of social progress and the success of public policies. Many (but not all) local and national governments use this data and research to pursue policies that help their citizens live better lives.

United Nations Organization: what is it?

The UN is an international organization of sovereign states, made up of practically every country in the world. It was created on October 24, 1945 in San Francisco (United States) when representatives of 51 countries met at the United Nations Conference to draft the Charter of Nations United.

This organization aims to help stabilize international relations and give greater consistency to peace in the world

. Currently, there are 193 member countries of the UN, and it has the following objectives:

• Keep the peace across the world
• Foster friendly relations between nations
• Collaborate to help the poor lift themselves out of poverty, combat hunger, disease, illiteracy, and encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms of everyone.
• To be a center that helps nations achieve their goals.

What are the countries with the greatest happiness?

The World Happiness Report 2015 is a research that has been produced by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), and it measures the well-being of the citizens of the different countries according to a series of statistical variables and individual perceptions.

Spain is ranked 36th in the World Happiness Report 2015

The first World Happiness Report was published in April 2012, the second in 2013 and the last in 2015. According to the latest report (which collects data from 2014), Spain is ranked number 36 with a total of 6,329 points. The ranking is led by Switzerland, which has obtained a total of 7,587 points. In the list of happiest countries in the world you can also see the most unhappy countries, which are: Togo, Burundi and Syria.

Some variables that the World Happiness Report measures

To prepare the list of the happiest countries in the world, different data related to the levels of economic development, but also other variables that have a subjective character, as are the positive and negative experiences that the population expresses following different patterns by sex, age and region.

The different variables that have been used for this study can be seen in different colors in this image. The end result comes from the data collected from the various sources and surveys.

These are the data that have been taken into account to make a list of the happiest countries in the world:

• Gross domestic product per capita: It is based on purchasing power parity (PPP), that is, the final sum of quantities of goods and services produced in a country, to the monetary value of a reference country. In this case adjusted to dollars (World Bank data).
• Social support- Opportunity to get help from family or friends in case of problems (Gallup poll data).
• Life expectancy: according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
• The freedom to make decisions in life (Gallup poll data).
• Generosity: how much money is donated to NGOs.
• The perception of corruption: citizens' perception of the government and companies.
• Positive affector: refers to how much people laugh according to the survey data from the Gallup poll).
• Negative affect: refers to the perception of sadness and anger (data from the Gallup poll).

The gray bar is called "Dystopia." It refers to a hypothetical country that would be the saddest, with the maximum value of the sum of the lowest negative scores. In other words, it would be the most corrupt country, with the saddest people, with the lowest life expectancy, etc. The longer the bar, the further away from that hypothetical negative country the state being analyzed is.

The list of the 10 happiest countries in the world

Below we show you the list of the 10 happiest countries in the world:

1. Swiss

The Alpine country has a cohesive society open to the world that allows it to lead this ranking.

2. Iceland

Despite the tremendous cold that bathes Icelandic territory, this small Atlantic country is second on the list.

3. Denmark

A beautiful, welcoming country with a high standard of living. Denmark makes podium.

4. Norway

The first four happy countries are located on the old continent - Europe.

5. Canada

The first American country on the list. And it is not surprising, considering the high rate of development, its anti-war policies and a cohesive and open society.

6. Finland

The Scandinavian countries are fully represented. Finland it is also on the list.

7. Netherlands

A flat territory where people travel by bicycle and respect the ecology.

8. Sweden

It is already known that the Nordic countries have a very high standard of living. Sweden It is the country that occupies the eighth position.

9. New Zealand

The continent of Oceania has its first representation with the islands of New Zealand.

10. Australia

Oceania repeats: Australia is the country that closes this list of the happiest countries on the planet.

Consult the UN report

You can consult the entire UN report by clicking on this link.