Nigeria has been ranked in the lower half of countries in the 2025 World Happiness Report, which evaluates benevolence through actions like charitable donations, volunteering, and helping strangers.
The report, based on data from the Gallup World Poll (2022–2024) and the World Risk Poll (2019), assesses countries across six key benevolence indicators. Nigeria performed poorly in several categories, particularly charitable donations and the return of lost wallets. However, it scored slightly better in helping strangers.
The report notes that the frequency of benevolent actions varies depending on local social and religious norms and the role of private generosity as a substitute for weak social safety nets. In nations like Nigeria, where social welfare systems are underdeveloped, generosity tends to be more informal and community-driven.
Nigeria’s Benevolence Ranking
The ranking evaluates countries based on the proportion of people who engage in acts of kindness, such as donating to charity, volunteering, or returning lost wallets. Nigeria’s performance in donation-related benevolence is notably low.
However, the country shows a different pattern when it comes to helping strangers, ranking higher in this area than in charitable donations. The report highlights how nations like Jamaica, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, which top the list for helping strangers, rank much lower in terms of donations.
Similarly, Nigeria follows this trend, with a higher ranking for helping strangers compared to charitable donations. The report also explores the concept of societal trust, using the return of lost wallets as a key indicator. Countries that excel in helping strangers often perform poorly in wallet return rankings.
In the case of Nigeria, as well as Kenya, the ranking for helping strangers is significantly higher than for donations, although both countries still face challenges when it comes to wallet return, placing them near the bottom of the global scale.
