Cyprus more generous in 2023 than last year

Cyprus ranks 52^nd in the World Giving Index, out of 142 countries, a 2023 report by the UK’s Charities Aid Foundation revealed.

The index aims to assess the generosity of each country and highlights the north ranks in 15^th place.

Using Gallup World Poll survey data, the findings show 63 per cent of adults in Cyprus helped a stranger, 40 per cent donated money and 24 per cent volunteered.

In 2022, Cyprus ranked in 60^th place, illustrating this year’s improvement in more people donating money.

The north was not listed in the report in 2022 but this year’s figures show 75 per cent there helped a stranger, 45 per cent donated money and 30 per cent volunteered.

Across the globe, 72 per cent of the world’s population supported others, amounting to 4.2 billion people.

The world’s most generous countries were Indonesia, Ukraine, Kenya, Liberia, United States, Myanmar, Kuwait, Canada, Nigeria and New Zealand.

Indonesia is the world’s most generous country for the sixth year in a row while Ukraine is this year’s highest climber, gaining 13 points since 2022, the report revealed.

The global World Giving Index score is 39, just one point lower than the high recorded in 2021. “The results indicate that the increase in global giving seen during the pandemic has been broadly maintained.”

Cyprus’ score this year was 42, while the north’s was 50.

According to the global findings, immigrants give more than nationals. “On average, those who say they were born in another country have a higher index score than nationals. This is most pronounced in the Middle East and North Africa (41 vs. 33) and Europe (44 vs. 37).”

People who are religious have a higher giving index, the report added.

Generosity is linked to life satisfaction, with the foundation highlighting that how an individual perceives their current life situation is linked to their likelihood to donate money. “People who rated their life today in positive terms were more likely to have made a gift to charity in the past month.”