Impress your friends and family with five facts about how people around the world donate.

The CAF World Giving Index 2015 report focuses on three kinds of charitable behaviour - donating money to charity, volunteering and helping a stranger - across 145 countries, to illustrate the nature of giving around the world in 2014. But did you know:

1. MYANMAR TOPS THE WORLD GIVING INDEX 2015 OVERALL AND IS THE FIRST COUNTRY TO BE TOP IN TWO OF THE THREE WAYS OF GIVING SINCE 2010

As well as maintaining its top ranking for donating money, Myanmar has secured first place for volunteering time – the first country to be placed top for two of the three ways of giving since 2010.

Myanmar’s strong culture of Theravada Buddhism, in which devotees practice Sangha Dana, continues to drive high levels of giving within the communities in the country.

After Myanmar is the US in second place and New Zealand in third.

2. THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF A COUNTRY CAN IMPACT ON GIVING BEHAVIOURS

Turkmenistan, previously ranked number one for volunteering in every year surveyed for the World Giving Index, dropped to 66th position this year. This reflects the cancellation of ‘Saturday subbotniks’ in Turkmenistan during 2014.

Subbotniks – the giving up of a Saturday to volunteer or perform unpaid labour, sometimes by mandatory instruction – are widespread in many former Soviet states.

3. AT A GLOBAL LEVEL, DONATING MONEY IS UP THIS YEAR

Almost a third of people gave money to a charity in the month prior to interview – a rise of 3.2 percentage points since 2013.

Participation levels for donating money have increased across all types of economy (developed, developing and transitional), where previously developed and developing economies had experienced declines in giving money between 2012 and 2013.

4. MEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO GIVE MONEY THAN WOMEN

For the first time since 2008, men are more likely to give money than women. Whilst women in developed economies still remain more likely to donate money than men, the differential has narrowed to the smallest gap ever recorded in the last five years of the World Giving Index.

This result, combined with the fact that men in both transitioning and developing economies already donate more money than women, means that at a global level, men are now marginally ahead of women.

5. THERE’S BEEN A RECOVERY IN YOUNGER PEOPLE GIVING THIS YEAR

More people in the youngest age group (15-29) donated money recovering the ground lost in 2013.

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Giving around the world

CAF World Giving Index 2015

Find out how the world gives, and see where your country ranks.

Download the report