Maltese youths unhappiest in Europe

The annual World Happiness Report shows Maltese people under 30 are the unhappiest in the European Union.

They rank 57 in the world, trailing all other EU states.

The World Happiness Report is an annual publication commissioned by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network. It ranks countries based on various factors related to happiness and well-being, such as income, social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.

The report published on Wednesday shows Malta ranks 40 out of 143 countries globally.

While Maltese young people say they are becoming increasingly unhappy, all other age groups appear to be happier than they were 15 years ago.

Those aged between 45 and 59 registered the highest increase in happiness, registering a 0.8 increase over the 2006 and 2010 period. Those aged 60 or older registered a 0.6 increase.

Malta’s overall happiness increased 0.39%.

According to the report, Finland, ranked the happiest country in the world, with the happiest people being those over 60 years old. The least happy are those under the age of 30.

The countries following Finland in the overall report are Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, and Israel, in this order.