The World’s Most Important Problem: What People Need Leaders to Hear in 2026

Introduction & Key Findings

With more active conflicts than at any point in recent decades, a rapidly changing climate, and ongoing technological disruption, there is no shortage of contenders for “the most important problem in the world.”

Every day, leaders confront a growing list of complex and overlapping challenges that demand their attention. These issues shape how people live — and how they judge their leaders.

In 2025, Gallup and the World Governments Summit released a global study examining what followers want from their leaders.

This year's report focuses on the issues they most want their leaders to solve, based on people’s responses to a new question added to the Gallup World Poll in 2025:

The findings reveal both shared global concerns and regional nuances. While economic struggles dominate globally, issues related to governance, work and security are also widespread.

This report summarizes people’s own words on the world’s most important problems across 107 countries, focusing primarily on those issues mentioned most often globally.

Understanding how people perceive their country’s biggest issues is a foundation for successful leadership. Leaders who understand what matters most to people are better equipped to lead effectively, whether in business, government or civil society.

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People worldwide are most concerned about their nation’s economy.

• Across 107 countries, a median of 23% of adults name the economy as their country’s most important issue.

• People living in lower-income countries cite economic issues and concerns about affording basic needs more frequently than those living in higher-income countries. However, people’s feelings about their household income shape perceptions far more than GDP growth rates.

• Young adults, women and people who rate their lives poorly enough to be considered suffering are least likely to think the national economy is working for them.

Work issues extend beyond unemployment.

• Ten percent of adults worldwide identify work-related issues as their country's primary problem.

• Although higher unemployment rates are linked to greater concern, joblessness alone does not explain public dissatisfaction.

• The quality of jobs (particularly, a lack of good ones) is a major factor in global concerns about work.

Institutional distrust fuels political discontent.

• Political and governance issues rank among the most frequently cited national problems worldwide (median of 8%), especially in high-income countries.

• Where trust in institutions is weak, people are more likely to view politics as their country's biggest challenge.

Security eclipses all other priorities in conflict-affected countries.

• In countries experiencing violent conflict or instability, physical safety and security dominate public concern, often marginalizing economic and political issues.

• In more peaceful nations, security rarely tops the list, underscoring how stability affords people the space to focus on other national challenges.

Economic Pressures

The economy ranks or ties for first as the biggest national issue in 71 of 107 countries analyzed.

Economic concerns pervade global consciousness, but their nature and intensity vary according to national wealth and individual circumstances.

Income Tied to Economic Concerns

Views of Economic Issues as Top National Problem by World Bank Income Groupings (% medians)

Bar chart showing concern for economic issues, including the economy and affordability of food and shelter, rises from 21% in high-income countries to 38% in low-income countries.

Due to rounding, median percentages may sum to ±1.

• In high-income countries, a median of 21% cite the economy or the inability to afford basic needs, such as food and shelter.

• This rises to 31% in upper-middle-income countries, 36% in lower-middle-income countries and 38% in low-income countries, where 14% specifically mention basic necessities of food and shelter, far higher than people in any other national income group.

Views of Economic Issues as Top National Problem by World Bank Income Groupings (% medians)

Bar chart showing concern for economic issues, including the economy and affordability of food and shelter, rises from 21% in high-income countries to 38% in low-income countries.

Due to rounding, median percentages may sum to ±1.

In 15 countries, at least half of adults cite either the economy or affording basic needs like food and shelter as their country’s biggest problem.

The top three countries on this list span different regions and economic contexts — from Malawi's high food insecurity, to Venezuela's economic collapse amid political crisis, to Bolivia's struggles with inflation — yet all feature populations focused on economic issues over all others.

Perception Matters More Than Performance

Notably, recent GDP growth is not meaningfully related to the likelihood that people name economic issues as their country's biggest problem.

Instead, people’s subjective perceptions of their household finances color their national priorities. Those who report "living comfortably on their present household income" are less likely to identify the economy as a top problem, while those who find it difficult are more likely.

This disconnect between macroeconomic indicators and public perception suggests that people judge national economic progress based on whether they feel secure and able to live well on their household income, rather than relying on national growth statistics.

Relationship Between Subjective Feelings About Household Income vs. GDP Growth and Views of Economic Issues as Top National Problem

Scatter plots showing that people’s economic concerns relate more to their ability to live comfortably on their household income (r=-0.43) than GDP growth (r=0.11).

GDP growth data from World Bank.

Who Worries Most About Economic Issues?

Concern about national economic issues is not evenly distributed across populations, and some groups are more likely to name them as the most important national problem than others.

34% of those aged 15 to 34 name the economy or affording basic necessities as their country’s most important concern.

By Age:

Economic anxiety runs highest among the young. Even after controlling for other demographic factors and national income, adults aged 15 to 34 view economic issues as the most pressing national concern.

34% of those aged 15 to 34 name the economy or affording basic necessities as their country’s most important concern.

• Thirty-four percent of this age group name the economy or affording basic necessities as their top issue, compared with 33% of those aged 35 to 54 and 30% of those 55 and older.

This generational divide is most pronounced in wealthy nations.

• In New Zealand, young adults are 24 percentage points more likely than the oldest residents to prioritize economic concerns, with similar gaps appearing in the United Kingdom (+20), Canada (+20), the U.S. (+19) and Australia (+17).

These disparities highlight how younger people in many high-income countries may feel the economy is failing them, despite living in relatively prosperous societies.

By Gender:

Women are more likely than men to cite economic issues (35% vs. 31%), even when controlling for other factors.

This gender pattern persists across all income levels, though the gap widens dramatically in poorer countries where women face sharper economic insecurity.

Women are more likely than men to cite economic issues.

• In Niger, women are 14 percentage points more likely than men to name economic concerns as their country's biggest problem, with similar double-digit gaps in Myanmar, Egypt, Togo, Nigeria, Madagascar, Benin, Libya and Pakistan.

Notably, these gender differences are present in countries where overall economic hardship is already severe.

36% of people classified as “suffering” identify economic issues as their country’s top concern.

By Wellbeing:

People’s economic perceptions are also related to how positive they feel about their current and future lives.

• Gallup’s Life Evaluation Index reveals that 30% of people classified as "thriving" identify economic issues as their nation's top concern. This figure rises to 34% among those classified as "struggling" and 36% among those who are "suffering."

36% of people classified as “suffering” identify economic issues as their country’s top concern.

While even people with high personal wellbeing recognize economic challenges, those experiencing difficult lives are notably more likely to view these issues as important.

These findings align with research by Nobel laureates Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton showing that subjective wellbeing rises with both personal and national income, up to a point.

Together, these patterns show that national economic anxiety is most prevalent among groups that often face greater financial insecurity, including young people, women and those experiencing low wellbeing.

Go Deeper: Ireland, Australia and Canada: Housing Crises in Context

Ireland, Australia and Canada rank among the world's wealthiest countries, yet all three feature among the top 10 countries most likely to cite affording basic needs as their biggest problem. The other seven countries where this issue ranks highest are in sub-Saharan Africa.

Percentage of Adults Who Cite Affording Basics of Food/Shelter as the Biggest Problem Facing Their Country

Bar chart showing countries where adults cite affordability of food/shelter as top concern. Ireland leads with 49%, followed by Malawi (33%) and Australia (29%).

Ireland, Australia and Canada face well-documented housing crises. Gallup World Poll data since 2007 show steep declines in satisfaction with affordable housing availability in all three countries, reaching 25% in 2025. The scale of housing dissatisfaction illustrates how economic anxiety persists even in prosperous nations when basic needs become unaffordable.

What This Means for Leaders

Macroeconomic performance alone does not drive public perceptions of the economy.

When people perceive the economy as failing them, headline GDP figures provide little reassurance.

Sustained economic credibility depends on whether growth translates into meaningful improvements in daily life and how people experience the economy, rather than numbers on a page.

Economic pressures are also felt unevenly.

In lower-income countries, the priority is to ensure that people can meet their basic needs. In higher-income countries, addressing the affordability of basic needs and narrowing generational gaps in perceived economic opportunity will prove essential in making people feel like the economy works for them.

Governance and Political Discontent

In many countries, politics is seen as a problem rather than a solution to other issues.

Political and governance issues rank as the third most common national concern globally, at 8%, although prevalence varies by region.

Northern America (23%), Europe (15%) and Latin America and the Caribbean (10%) all see double-digit levels of concern, higher than in Asia-Pacific (8%), sub-Saharan Africa (6%), former Soviet states (5%) or the Middle East and North Africa (4%).

Wealth and Political Concern

People in high-income countries are more likely to name politics as the top issue facing their nation than those in lower-income countries.

A median of 14% of individuals in high-income countries cite politics or government as their most important problem, compared with 7% in upper-middle-income countries and 5% in low- and lower-middle-income countries.

These findings demonstrate that when basic needs are more secure, frustration is often directed at the performance of government itself.

Perceptions of Politics/Government Being Top National Problem by World Bank Income Groupings (% medians)

Concern about national politics and government also rises with household income.

Perceptions of Politics/Government Being Top National Problem by World Bank Income Groupings (% medians)

After controlling for demographic factors and national income, the likelihood of naming politics as the top national issue increases with household income:

Two factors help explain this pattern:

1. As societies grow more prosperous, expectations for effective, transparent governance rise faster than governments' capacity to meet them.

2. Wealthier nations typically offer more democratic openness, making criticism of government more acceptable, visible and sometimes a sign of political health.

European countries feature prominently among nations and areas most concerned with political issues.

While Taiwan ranks highest globally (50%), Slovenia, Spain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Lithuania, France, the Netherlands, Latvia, Moldova and Finland all rank among the countries most likely to cite politics and government as the biggest national issue.

Perceptions of Politics/Government Being Top National Problem

The Trust Connection

In many countries, trust in institutions has become a barometer of perceived national wellbeing.

Institutional trust is uniquely linked to national political satisfaction. People expressing low confidence in institutions — such as the national government, the judicial system, election integrity, the military and financial institutions — are more likely to identify politics as their country's biggest problem.

After controlling for other demographic factors and national income, people who express trust in none or just one of these five institutions are roughly twice as likely to say that politics is the biggest national problem as those who are confident in four or five institutions (15% vs. 8% respectively).

Notably, institutional confidence shows little relationship to whether people cite the economy, employment or safety/security as top concerns.

Perceived Top National Problem by Level of Institutional Trust (% medians)

Bar chart showing that adults with low trust in institutions are nearly twice as likely to cite politics as their country’s top problem (15% vs. 8%). Trust in institutions has less influence on views of economic issues, safety and security, and work-related issues as the most important problem in one’s country.

Data are cut by the number (of five) institutions that respondents have confidence in: national government, judicial system, honesty of elections, military and financial institutions. The percentages presented in these charts are estimated marginal means generated from general linear regression models, which control for a range of respondent demographic characteristics and country-level attributes. These include respondent age, gender, household income level, education, urbanicity, marital status, employment status and life evaluation. Country-level metrics include GDP growth, unemployment rate and World Bank income classification.

The relationship between confidence in institutions and perceived problems in national governance is strongest in high-income countries. In lower-income nations, this relationship largely disappears, as political frustration may be overshadowed by economic hardship or normalized as part of daily life.

In 11 high-income countries, there are double-digit gaps between individuals with high vs. low trust in institutions in their belief that politics/government is the most important problem in their country. These gaps are widest in Hungary (26 points), Finland (21 points), the U.S. (20 points), the Czech Republic (19 points) and Canada (19 points).

Go Deeper: Concern Spans Generations Where Social Issues Rank High

Social issues such as discrimination, racism and poverty do not rank among the top national problems globally. However, they spark relatively high concern in several high-income countries, including New Zealand (20%), Finland (18%), South Korea (15%), Germany (12%), and Singapore, Norway and the U.S. (all 11%).

In these countries, concern about social issues spans generations. Similar proportions of younger and older adults identify social issues as their country's biggest problem, challenging the assumption that such concerns are concentrated among youth.

Percentage Who Name Social Issues as Top National Problem by Age

Bar chart displaying the percentage who perceive social issues to be the top concern in their country by age group. Countries shown include New Zealand, Finland, South Korea, Germany, Singapore, Norway and the United States. At least 10% of the youngest age group, those 15-34, see social issues as a top problem in all seven countries.

Go Deeper: Concern About Immigration in High-Income Countries

At the global level, other national priorities often outweigh concerns about immigration.

Concerns about migration cluster in high-income countries that often serve as target destinations for those seeking to move, including the United Kingdom, where 21% name immigration as the biggest national problem, the Netherlands and Cyprus (both 13%), and Portugal and Malta (both 12%).

However, in countries where at least 5% of adults cite immigration as the top national problem, there is little relationship to total migration levels.

• The United Kingdom stands out for its high levels of concern despite having a similar share of foreign-born residents as the U.S., Sweden and Norway — all of which see much lower levels of concern about immigration relative to other national issues.

• Similarly, comparable proportions of adults in Malta and the Dominican Republic name immigration as their top issue (12% and 11% respectively), even though Malta has six times the proportion of immigrants.

These comparisons highlight a recurring pattern:

• In countries where immigration rises to the top of national concerns, public debate is often disconnected from actual migration levels and shaped instead by wider political, historical and media contexts.

What This Means for Leaders

Political dissatisfaction tends to concentrate in prosperous democracies where open criticism of government is a part of civic life.

Some of this discontent can be constructive, as healthy democracies depend on skepticism; however, there is a line beyond which it bleeds into a sense that the broader system is no longer working or self-correcting.

In higher-income countries, political concern is closely related to declining institutional trust and perceptions of whether institutions operate honestly and fairly.

Gallup research finds that how people feel about their local conditions and services, such as housing, healthcare and education, is the strongest predictor of institutional confidence. This relationship holds regardless of political system or national income.

If leaders want to build trust and demonstrate that politics works for ordinary residents, they need to start at the local level. The broader lesson for governments is that to be perceived as a solution, rather than a problem or roadblock, people must feel that the state is working effectively and fairly for them.

Conclusion

People measure national progress by their daily experiences: Can they live well, work well, trust their leaders and feel safe?

Economic issues dominate worldwide, particularly among young people and women. These concerns range from affording basic needs in lower-income countries to navigating high housing costs in more prosperous nations. People judge a nation's economic health by how well they feel they are able to live, not by whether its GDP is growing.

Employment concerns extend beyond joblessness. People care about job quality, workplace safety and the dignity of work. In countries with high unemployment, work naturally rises to the top of national priorities. Yet even where jobs are plentiful, those employed and engaged in their work remain troubled by the state of work itself. Addressing work-related problems requires both creating opportunities and repairing workplaces that fail to support the people in them.

Political dissatisfaction concentrates in wealthier countries and correlates strongly with institutional trust. When people lose faith in government, the judiciary or electoral integrity, they increasingly view politics itself as the problem. Building confidence in institutions, beginning with local services and community wellbeing, provides the foundation for political legitimacy.

Finally, in countries marked by major conflict, security concerns often overshadow every other issue. The data indicate that peace and stability lay the groundwork for progress on economic growth, social wellbeing and institutional reform.

Ninety years after George Gallup first asked Americans to identify the most important national problem, the world’s answers differ, but the importance of listening remains the same. Understanding public opinion is the first step in solving many of the world’s challenges, as today's attitudes help shape tomorrow's decisions.