The UAE was ranked among the top 10 countries worldwide in wellbeing indicators of the 2018 World Poll, which tracks the opinions of people in more than 160 countries on what matters most to them.
Ohoud bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness and Wellbeing and Director-General of the Prime Minister’s Office, affirmed that the UAE’s advanced ranking on the indicators reflects the country’s focus on enhancing wellbeing in all sectors.
Al Roumi praised the efforts of all government, private, community and academic organisations in the UAE as being the driving force behind this achievement, which reflects the vision and directions of the UAE leadership.
The UAE was ranked first globally on the ‘Availability of Quality Healthcare’, moving up a rank from last year when it came in second, which reflects the government’s continuous efforts to develop this vital sector.
The UAE also came first in four other indicators, namely, ‘Satisfaction with Government Efforts to Preserve the Environment’, which confirms the government’s important role in responding to climate change challenges and protecting the environment; ‘Full-time Employment Ratio’ and the ‘Payroll to Population Index’, which reflects the UAE’s global leadership as an attractive environment for minds and talents.
The UAE also was ranked first in ‘Access to Mobile Phones’, as well as ‘Feeling Safe Index’, which confirms the UAE’s leadership in enhancing safety and security.
The UAE came second in two of the global survey’s indicators, ‘Quality of Roads and Highways’ and ‘Absence of Health Problems’ that would prevent individuals from performing daily activities, reflecting the advanced levels of healthcare in the UAE.
The UAE was ranked fourth worldwide in terms of its cities being recommended as a place to live for people from other countries, which reflects the country’s success in providing the highest levels of quality of life for its residents.
The UAE came in fifth on the belief that children in the country are treated with respect, which confirms the country’s continuous efforts to care for children, promote their safety and ensure a better future for them. The country ranked sixth on two other indicators, namely, the feeling that the standard of living is getting better, reflecting the sustainable growth of the UAE’s economic sectors; and the access to the internet indicator, which confirms the advancement of the UAE’s technological infrastructure.
Furthermore, the UAE came in seventh on three indicators – satisfaction with life in five years, which reflects optimism for the future; satisfaction with standard of living, and satisfaction with the city of residence, reflecting the high quality of life standards enjoyed by individuals in society. The country also came in ninth on two indicators: satisfaction with public transportation systems; as well as the freedom to make personal life choices.
The UAE also achieved advanced positions in various other wellbeing indicators, including the feeling that economic conditions are getting better, feelings about household income, confidence in financial institutions, being treated with respect, the belief that children have the opportunity to learn and grow, and the quality of air and quality of water indicators.
The annual Gallup World Poll is conducted in more than 160 countries, and includes 13 main domains which cover vital sectors that directly affect people’s lives, including education and families, health, society, personal wellbeing, work, business and economics, government, food and shelter, environment and energy, citizen engagement, communications and technology, law and order, and institutions and infrastructure.
