2021 world happiness index is out and India as always tanked in the global ranking. In 2021, India ranked 139 out of 149 countries. This article explores from the happiness index data of past years how is Gender Equality related to World Happiness Index.

Even though UN always claimed that happiness come with Gender Equality and the more a country becomes gender equal, the more it becomes happy as well, this study of Global Happiness Report and the Global Gender Equality report, 2016 proves it to be otherwise.

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It seems, there is an interesting correlation between happiness and gender equality. Today I will tell you that using global reports published on happiness and gender equality. Even though World Happiness Report in 2016 stated that the more a country attains gender equality, the more they will be happy because of equitable distribution of assets, a detailed analysis of these two reports however proved otherwise.

A comparison of top 20 most happy countries in 2016 World Happiness Report and their corresponding ranking of Gender Equality as mentioned in 2016 Global Gender Gap Report found that 13 out of 20 countries that had gained maximum happiness in last one decade have all slipped in their gender equality ranking –

[Explanation of the table above – The green and red arrow depicts if the corresponding rank in gender equality has increased or decreased respectively wrt the other year. For example, Kyrgyzstan was ranked 20 in 2015 among the countries who gained maximum in happiness index between 2005 to 2015. Their Gender Equality ranking in 2006 was 52 and in 2016 they slipped to 81 rank. Note, that a gender equality rank 52 is better (denoted by red arrow) compared to their ranking in 2016 which was 81. Since 81 is higher number (and hence poor ranking) compare to 52 (their ranking in 2006) it is denoted by a green arrow.

Now if you count the number of green arrows in the column of gender equality in 2016 (or those who gender equality ranking was worsened), you will find that out of the top 20 gainers in happiness, at least 13 countries slipped in their gender parity ranking, i.e. their gender equality ranking has increased.]

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Out of rest of the seven countries, such data was not available for three countries and only the other four countries have shown improvement in gender parity while also being happier.

It is also observed that out of the top 20 countries in Gender Equality per 2016 Global Gender Gap Report, only six countries viz. Norway, Philippines, Nicaragua, Switzerland, Germany, and Latvia have shown improvements in happiness and twelve countries have shown a decline –

Data for Iceland and Burundi are not available.

[Explanation of the table above – The countries with a red arrow in 2016 shows they have improved their gender parity ranking in 2016 compared to 2006. Also change in happiness index denotes a negative change means loss of happiness and a positive change in the index means gain of happiness.

So, among the top 20 countries in 2016 gender equality ranking, 10 have improved their gender equality rank compared to 2006. However, out of those 10 countries, viz. Iceland, Finland, Rwanda, Ireland, Slovenia, Switzerland, Namibia, South Africa, France and Latvia – Finland, Rwanda, Ireland, Slovenia, Namibia, South Africa and France or 7 countries have slipped in the happiness index. Only two out of other three gainer countries have shown improvement in happiness, i.e. a positive happiness index.

It can also be noted that among the other 10 countries that have lost in gender equality ranking in 2016, Norway, Philippines and Germany has gained in happiness index between these years.]

The above analysis clearly shows that contrary to the claim made in World Happiness Report, Gender equality can’t bring happiness to a country.

In fact, a study of top 20 countries in terms of minimum standard deviation of happiness (Figure 2.5 of World Happiness Report) or Equality of Happiness (in other words, happiness for all) only four belonged to top ten in Gender Equality (better rank in std. dev. or lower std. dev. means maximum people fall near a mean value of happiness).

In fact, there are countries like Bhutan (121), Mauritania (129) and Rwanda (128) in this list that falls at the lower end of gender parity. In terms of overall happiness index, they fall below but we need to understand that 2016 happiness index also included factors like per capita GDP, Social Support and Healthy Life Expectancy where the third world countries are at a clear disadvantage.

Only countries like Iceland, Finland, Sweden and New Zealand out of this list of top 20 countries are also in top 10 ranks of Global Gender Parity chart.

Clearly, feminist controlled UN and other global bodies are trying to show that feminist nations as the happiest ones contrary to the fact that in order to gain gender equality, nations need to lose their happiness.

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