Vietnam has jumped up four places to 79th out of 149 countries and territories in the World Happiness Report 2021, which has been recently released by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

Vietnam scored 5.411 points, up from the 5.353 it got last year, according to the latest report of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, a global initiative launched by the United Nations in 2012.

A family in Hanoi on the first day of the Lunar New Year. Photo: T.P.Diep

The country even surpasses China that ranks 84th, and other Southeast Asian nations like Malaysia (81), Indonesia (82), Laos (100), Cambodia (114) and Myanmar (126). It ranked behind Singapore (32), Thailand (54th) and the Philippines (61).

Using data from a Gallup World Poll, the ranking measured the happiness level in 149 economies across the world, based on six factors, including gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and absence of corruption.

Among the six factors, Vietnam performed best in freedom to make life choices, ranking 9th globally, while its generosity factor fared worst, at 112nd, with Vietnamese people deemed less generous than neighboring peers.

This year’s ranking was quite different with previous rankings because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The World Happiness Report 2021 focuses on the effects of the pandemic and how people all over the world have fared.

“We need urgently to learn from the Covid-19 pandemic. The World Happiness Report 2021 reminds us that we must aim for wellbeing rather than mere wealth, which will be fleeting indeed if we don’t do a much better job of addressing the challenges of sustainable development,” said Jeffrey Sachs, co-author of the report.

Top five countries in the happiness ranking are dominated by European nations, comprising Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland and the Netherlands. New Zealand is the only country outside Europe to be included in the top ten, claiming the ninth position.

Countries at the bottom of the list were those afflicted by extreme poverty and violence, like Zimbabwe, South Sudan and Afghanistan.