Nigeria is the happiest country in Africa, Kenyans are least happy lot- Report

Most Kenyans who were interviewed indicated that they were worried and anxious about what the future holds. [Courtesy] 

Kenya is lagging among the bottom ten least happy countries in the world.

Out of the 95 countries that were surveyed for the World Happiness report released on Friday, Kenya is at position 86.

Most Kenyans who were interviewed indicated that they were worried and anxious about what the future holds.

The report that was issued by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network does an annual survey on how happy citizens of their countries perceive themselves to be. The report is published a day before the World Happiness Day that falls on March 20.

The poll focused on the effect of the pandemic and how people all over the world fared. Nigeria is the happiest African country, while Zimbabwe was rated last in the happiness index among the countries that were sampled. People in war-torn countries like Afghanistan were also unhappy.

The United States was ranked at 19th place for happiness, despite being one of the richest countries in the world.

 “The pandemic made us constantly worried that we could spread the disease to anyone we are in contact with. We were always worried that we can kill someone,” says Gillian Cherop whose father has diabetes.

Even though many people have always linked happiness to a growing economy and having money, the happiness report found that most people link their happiness to trust. The more people trust individuals and systems around them, the happier they were.

One of the questions that the sample population was asked was whether they trusted that if they lost their wallet and someone found it, it would be returned to them.

“To feel that your lost wallet would be returned if found by a police officer, a neighbour, or a stranger, is estimated to be more important for happiness than income, unemployment, and major health risks,” said the report.

Other factors that contributed to people’s happiness include having a pet, a strong social connection, exercising, and volunteering.

Getrude Kerubo, a counsellor says even though Africans may not have gotten the devastating fatalities that countries in Europe experienced, cutting the social ties like religious institutions and pubs had a great impact on the happiness of Africans, especially Kenyans.

“We were used to getting into a club, venting and talking about politics. Religious spaces were a social norm for many people. They went there to dance and sing, so when it was suddenly cut off, many people got affected,” she says.

She adds that over the last few months, she has gotten more clients who complain of rapid heart palpitations, irritability and headache, which are signs of anxiety.

“Many people are struggling with the unseen weight of this pandemic,” she says.

In 2019, President Uhuru Kenyatta commissioned a mental health taskforce to come up with solutions to the growing number of mental health conditions in the country. One of the recommendation of the taskforce was to come up with a “Happiness Commission” that will be mandated with monitoring how happy citizens are.

Interestingly, in the global happiness index, older people seemed to be happier despite the fact that they were the most at risk of Covid-19.

John Helliwell, an economist who helped to compile the happiness report says there are many possibilities for this, including the fact that older people could have felt happy that the whole world was sacrificing to save them.

There was also the suggestion that older people who were often retired and lonely were having their families closer as lockdown was enforced.

It was also interesting to note that countries that were on top of the happiness chart in 2019 before the pandemic maintained their position. The top three happiest countries are Finland, Iceland and Denmark.  

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