The Netherlands in the top three of the wealthiest countries in Europe | Economy

Last year, the size of our economy exceeded 1 trillion euros for the first time. This is also called the gross domestic product (GDP), or the value of everything we have produced in the Netherlands in a year. This amounts to a GDP of almost 58,000 euros per inhabitant.

It says something about the level of prosperity in a country. The higher the amount per inhabitant, the higher the prosperity. With the 58,000 euros, the Netherlands basically comes in fourth place. But CBS also looked at the price level, in other words: what you can buy with that money. And then we end up in third place.

At the bottom is Bulgaria, with a GDP per inhabitant of 15,000 euros. Even corrected for the price level, the Bulgarians are at the bottom. In any case, many countries from eastern Europe, such as Greece, Romania and Croatia, do not score well.

However, there is often criticism of GDP as an indication of how a country is doing. There are numerous factors that determine quality of life that are not included. For example, what the safety situation is in a country, whether there is enough living space, whether the income differences are not too great and what the quality of care is.

To gain a better understanding of how a country is doing and how pleasant it is to live in it, the term “broad prosperity” was created. This also includes consideration of housing, the environment, social contacts and personal development.

Research by Rabobank and Utrecht University showed last year that broad prosperity has hardly increased in recent years. Dutch people are also less healthy and satisfied. For example, things are better in terms of job security and personal development, but less so in terms of housing, health and happiness.

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