The Hanke's Annual Misery Index (HAMI) has ranked nearly 160 nations based on factors such as bank lending rates, inflation, and unemployment figures.
Zimbabwe: the Topper of the Misery Ranking
MailOnline reports that, according to this ranking, Zimbabwe is the most miserable country in the world. For three years in a row, Zimbabwe has been included in the top five gloomiest countries in the ranking.
The New York Post notes that the title was granted to Zimbabwe with economic mismanagement being the main factor that reportedly contributed to the unhappiness of the residents.
Steve Hanke, applied economics professor from Johns Hopkins University, who is the proponent of the index, has reportedly spent over two decades monitoring Zimbabwe since inflation soared in 2008 under the presidency of Robert Mugabe, per The Telegraph. Hanke's economic growth predictions were just 0.9%. This contrasted with the predictions of Mthuli Ncube, the finance minister of the African nation, who predicted the numbers to be 6%.
Hanke adds that the policies of the country have significantly led to widespread misery. For instance, the country has endured endemic inflation since the rule of Mugabe. This covers two hyperinflation episodes where the inflation rate went over 50% each month for at least 30 days.
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Most Miserable Countries in the World
Trailing behind Zimbabwe were Venezuela and Syria, as well as Sudan, Lebanon, Yemen, Argentina, Cuba, Ukraine, and Turkey.
Venezuela came directly behind Zimbabwe. Similar to the latter's case, Venezuela also seemed to suffer from economic mismanagement, per MailOnline.
Hanke also specifically noted the case of Syria, which landed third on the list. Hanke mentions that a country facing civil war for more than a decade is quite expected to lack happiness.
The United States, on the other hand, came 134th in the ranking. This is quite a significant shift, as the US appeared to move away from its 102nd spot from last year. The biggest contributing factor to misery in the US is unemployment, with 3.4% of Americans dealing with joblessness as of April. MailOnline notes that this is the lowest unemployment level in decades.
Moreover, the UK landed at the 129th spot on the list. This shows that Britain may have gotten more miserable in the last year, as it was in 153rd place just a year before. According to Hanke, inflation that went as high as 10.1% in March could have largely contributed to this.
Ukraine, on the other hand, came 8th in the ranking. At present, the nation is still holding its fort against the Russian forces. Based on a report from Ukraine's National Bank, the unemployment rate went as high as 35%.
Just last year, Cuba topped the misery ranking list. MailOnline notes that the country endured high inflation in 2021, which was fuelled by the value drop of the peso. Now, Cuba lies behind Ukraine in the ninth spot.
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