Israel has reached the Number 12 spot in the 2021 United Nations World Happiness Report, two spots ahead of Canada, and beating the UK (#17) and the United States (#19). (Last year Israel ranked 14th.)
This year’s annual report – the ninth since the start of the project — was released Friday and rated 149 countries based on gross domestic product per person and healthy life expectancy, from 2018 to 2020. It is produced by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
Surveys were conducted in fewer than 100 countries this year due to the pandemic; they asked the opinions of the population regarding social support networks, freedom to make life choices, views on the level of corruption in their society and their own personal level of generosity.
Finland is rated the happiest country in the world, followed by Denmark and then Switzerland. Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg, New Zealand and Austria completed the Top 10. Australia followed at #11, with Israel at #12.