Nigeria has dropped to 106th position in the 2026 World Happinees Report, marking a continued decline from 105th in 2025 and 102nd in 2024.
The latest report, released on Thursday, ranked 147 countries as part of activities marking the International Day of Happiness, celebrated globally on March 20.
Compiled annually, the World Happiness Report is published by the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre in collaboration with Gallup and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. It draws on data from the Gallup World Poll, where respondents assess their quality of life on a scale of zero to 10.
According to the report, Mauritius emerged as the happiest country in Africa, ranking 73rd globally. It is followed by Libya, Algeria and Mozambique among the top performers on the continent.
Other African countries in the top 10 include Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, South Africa, Niger and Tunisia, which is ranked 105th globally.
On the global stage, Finland retained its position as the world’s happiest country for the ninth consecutive year. Iceland, Denmark and Costa Rica followed closely, with Nordic nations continuing to dominate the top rankings.
The report evaluates countries based on a three-year average, taking into account factors such as GDP per capita, social support, life expectancy, freedom, generosity and perceptions of corruption.
The International Day of Happiness was established by the United Nations General Assembly in June 2012 to highlight the importance of well-being and happiness in people’s lives.