A new global survey released by Gallup during the World Government Summit has ranked the UAE as the country with the highest level of public satisfaction worldwide, with nearly one-third of residents reporting no major concerns across key areas such as the economy, employment, governance, and safety.
The report, published on the summit’s second day, found the UAE leading all surveyed nations in overall satisfaction, followed by Kuwait and Bahrain.
The study, titled The World’s Most Important Problem: What People Need Leaders to Hear in 2026, gathered responses from adults in 107 countries and examined what citizens believe are the most urgent issues in their countries, as well as what improvements they want to see. Gallup grouped concerns into 12 broad categories, but noted that four themes dominate globally: economic issues, employment, politics and government performance, and safety and security.
“People don’t feel progress through GDP charts. They feel it through safety, dignity and opportunity in their daily lives. Leaders who ignore that risk solve the wrong problems,” said Jon Clifton, CEO of Gallup.
In the UAE, the survey found that environmental concerns ranked highest at 19 per cent, followed by work and employment at 12 per cent, infrastructure at 12 per cent, and the economy at 7 per cent.
Gallup’s findings also align with other recent indicators measuring public trust, including the 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer released last month, which placed the UAE at the top globally in trust in government.
The Edelman index also found that 63 per cent of people in the UAE believe the next generation will be better off, nearly double the global figure of 32 per cent.
Gallup said the results highlight that public sentiment is shaped more by lived experiences and everyday realities than by external measures or broad national statistics.
Globally, the economy was the most frequently cited national concern, ranking first in 71 out of 107 countries surveyed. The report noted that younger adults aged 15 to 34 expressed stronger economic anxiety than other age groups, while women were more likely than men to identify economic issues as the most pressing national problem.
Work and employment emerged as the second most common concern worldwide. Gallup said dissatisfaction with work-related issues is influenced not only by unemployment but also by whether people feel connected to the workforce.
In wealthier and more stable countries, the report found that concerns often shift toward politics and governance, particularly in places where trust in institutions such as government, courts, elections, the military, and financial systems is low.
In countries affected by war or severe instability, Gallup noted that physical safety and security becomes the dominant concern, frequently outranking economic issues and governance, with peace and stability shaping public priorities more strongly than any other factor.
