Inequality lowers Georgia’s happiness score: Report

worldhappiness.report

TBILISI, DFwatch–According to the World Happiness Report 2016, published today, Georgia is in 126^th place out of 157 countries included in the study.

The result places Georgia as the ‘least happy’ country of the former Soviet Union, while Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are ‘the happiest’, both placed 49^th.

Georgia scored particularly low in the categories of social support (‘having someone to count on in times of trouble’) and generosity (donating money to charity).

Researchers note, however, that Georgia’s happiness level measured in the period 2013–2015 is substantially higher than in the period 2005–2007.

As for Georgia’s neighbouring countries, Armenia came 121^st, Azerbaijan came 81^st, Russia came 56^th, and Turkey came 78^th.

The World Happiness Report uses a methodology which combines a variety of measurements of well-being based on income, health, family and friends, and the broader institutional and social context. Other indicators include subjective perceptions of freedom to make life choices, generosity, or level of corruption.

This year’s report gives a special role to the measurement and consequences of inequality in the distribution of well-being, as the researchers involved in preparation of the report concluded that people are happier who live in societies where there is less inequality of happiness.

The World Happiness Report has been published since 2012 by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network and is commissioned to promote practical problem solving for sustainable development, including the design and implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.