SVG said to be low on suicides

St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), is ranked among the countries in the world with the lowest rates of suicide.

Disclosure of this was made by Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves on NBC radio on Wednesday June 5, 2024.

As a matter of fact, St Vincent and the Grenadines ranks as the country with the 4th lowest suicide rate in the world, according to information from the publication “Population Review”.

Dr Gonsalves noted that the other low ranking countries in the region are: Antigua/Barbuda, Grenada, and Barbados.

With this ranking, the Prime Minister concluded that “by and large, people are contented and people feel generally safe” here in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

He said that Vincentians are a happy people who love life. While there are challenges, Vincentians try  to overcome, rather than to go under.

Last year 2023, more than 50,000 persons died by suicide in the USA.

Each year, it is estimated that over 703, 000 people around the world die by suicide. In 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO), named Lesotho as the country with the highest suicide rate in the world.

That country recorded 75.6 suicides per 100,000 people in that year.

In 2017, 49.2% of the population in the Southern Africa State were living in poverty.