SUSTAINABILITY

ASSIGNMENT: 2

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX

SUBMITTED BY:
ANUSHKA NARAYAN
B.FTECH
 Human Development Index
Introduction
In 1990, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) transformed the landscape of
development theory, measurement, and policy with the publication of its first annual Human
Development Report (HDR) and the introduction of the Human Development Index. HDR 1990
presented the concept of “human development” as progress towards greater human well -
being, and provided country-level data for a wide range of well-being indicators. The UNDP’s
establishment of the HDR expanded both the availability of measurement and comparison
tools used by governments, NGOs, and researchers, and our common understanding of
development itself.

The Human Development Index, or HDI, embodies Amartya Sen’s “capabilities” approach to
understanding human well-being, which emphasizes the importance of ends (like a decent
standard of living) over means (like income per capita) (Sen 1985). Key capabilities are
instrumentalized in HDI by the inclusion of proxies for three important ends of development:
access to health, education, and goods. Empowered by these, and other, capabilities,
individuals can achieve their desired state of being.
Definition:
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical tool developed and compiled by the
United Nations used to measure a country's overall achievement in its social and economic
dimensions. The social and economic dimensions of a country are based on the health of
people, their level of education attainment and their standard of living.

It is composed of four principal areas of interest: mean years of schooling expected years of
schooling, life expectancy at birth, and gross national income per capita. This index is a tool
used to follow changes in development levels over time and to compare the development
levels of different countries.

Human Development: The Concept

The concept of human development focuses on the ends rather than the means of
development and progress. The real objective of development should be to create an
enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy and creative lives. Though this may
appear to be a simple truth, it is often overlooked as more immediate concerns are given
precedence.
Human development denotes both the process of widening people's choices and improving
their well-being. The most critical dimensions of human development are: a long and healthy
life, knowledge and a decent standard of living. Additional concerns include social and
political freedoms. The concept distinguishes between two sides of human development.One
is the formation of human capabilities, such as improved health or knowledge. The other is
the enjoyment of these acquired capabilities, for work or for leisure.

Understanding the Human Development Index (HDI)

The Human Development Index (HDI) was established to place emphasis on indivi duals, more
precisely on their opportunities to realize satisfying work and lives. Evaluating a country's
potential for individual human development provides a supplementary metric for evaluating
a country's level of development besides considering standard economic growth statistics,
such as gross domestic product (GDP).

This index can also be used to examine the various policy choices of nations; if, for example,
two countries have approximately the same gross national income (GNI) per capita, then it
can help to evaluate why they produce widely disparate human development outcomes.
Proponents of the HDI hope it can be used to stimulate such productive public policy debate.

How Is the HDI Measured?

The HDI is a summary measurement of basic achievement levels in human development. The
computed HDI of a country is an average of indexes of each of the life aspects that are
examined: knowledge and understanding, a long and healthy life, and an acceptable standard
of living. Each of the four components is normalized to scale between 0 and 1, and then the
geometric mean of the three components is calculated.
The health aspect of the HDI is measured by the life expectancy, as calculated at the time of
birth, in each country, normalized so that this component is equal to 0 when life expectancy
is 20 and equal to 1 when life expectancy is 85.

Education is measured on two levels: the mean years of schooling for residents of a country
and the expected years of schooling that a child has at the average age for starting s chool.
These are each separately normalized so that 15 mean years of schooling equals one, and 18
years of expected schooling equals one, and a simple mean of the two is calculated.

The metric chosen to represent the standard of living is GNI per capita based on purchasing
power parity (PPP), a common metric used to reflect average income. The standard of living
is normalized so that it is equal to 1 when GNI per capita is $75,000 and equal to 0 when GNI
per capita is $100. The final Human Development Index score for each country is calculated
as a geometric mean of the three components by taking the cube root of the product of the
normalized component scores.
Every year UNDP ranks countries based on the HDI report released in their annual report. HDI
is one of the best tools to keep track of the level of development of a country, as it combines
all major social and economic indicators that are responsible for economic development.

How is the Human Development Index calculated?

The Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key
dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent
standard of living.
The HDI utilizes four key metrics: 3

 life expectancy at birth – to assess a long and healthy life

 expected years of schooling – to assess access to knowledge of the young generation

 average years of schooling – to assess access to knowledge of the older generation

 gross national income (GNI) per capita – to assess the standard of living

There are two steps to calculating the HDI:

1. Forming indices for each of the four metrics

Values of each of the four metrics are first normalized to an index value of 0 to 1. To do this,
“goalposts” of the maximum and minimum limits on each metrics are set by the UNDP, as
shown in the table.

With the actual value for a given country, and the global maximum and minimum, the
dimension (indices) value for each metric is calculated as:

The dimension index is therefore 1 in a country that achieves the maximum value and it is 0
for a country that is at the minimum value.

2. Aggregating the four metrics to produce the HDI

Once each of the individual indices have been calculated, they are aggregated to calculate the
HDI.

The HDI is calculated as the geometric mean (equally-weighted) of life expectancy, education,
and GNI per capita, as follows:

The education dimension is the arithmetic mean of the two education indices (mean years of
schooling and expected years of schooling).

Limitations of the Index

The HDI is a simplification and an admittedly limited evaluation of human development. The
HDI does not specifically reflect quality-of-life factors, such as empowerment movements or
overall feelings of security. In recognition of these facts, the Human Development Report
Office (HDRO) provides additional composite indices to evaluate other life aspects, including
inequality issues such as gender disparity or racial inequality. Examination and evaluation of
a country's HDI are best done in concert with examining these and other factors, such as the
country's rate of economic growth, expansion of employment opportunities, and the success
of initiatives undertaken to improve the overall quality of life within a country.

Several economists have raised the criticism of the HDI that it is essentially redundant as a
result of the high correlations between the HDI, its components, and simpler measures of
income per capita. GNI per capita (or even GDP per capita) correlates very highly with both
the overall HDI and the other two components in both values and rankings. Given these strong
and consistent correlations, it would be simpler and clearer to just compare per capita GNI
across countries than to spend time and resources collecting data for the additional
components that provide little or no additional information to the overall index.

Indeed, a fundamental principle of the composite index design is to not include multiple
additional components that are strongly correlated in a way that suggests that they might
reflect the same underlying phenomenon. This is to prevent inefficient double counting and
to avoid introducing additional sources of potential errors in the data.

In the case of HDI, the inclusion of the components is problematic because it is easily plausible
that higher average incomes directly lead to both more investment in formal education and
better health and longevity, and definitions and measurement of years of schooling and life
expectancy can vary widely from country to country.

Criticism
The Human Development Index has been criticized on a number of grounds, including alleged
lack of consideration of technological development or contributions to the human civilization,
focusing exclusively on national performance and ranking, lack of attention to development
from a global perspective, measurement error of the underlying statistics, and on the UNDP's
changes in formula which can lead to severe misclassification in the categorisati on of "low",
"medium", "high" or "very high" human development countries.
The Human Development Index around the world:
The HDI data is regularly published by the United Nations Development Programme.
The differences across the world are very large, ranging from the highest values in North
America, Europe, Japan, and Oceania to the lowest in central Africa.

Long run perspective from the Historical Index of Human Development:

The economic historian Leandro Prados de la Escosura calculated the HDI over the course of
two centuries. He refers to it as the ‘Historical Index of Human Development’.

This data is shown here to give a long run perspective on human development.
Country-by-country perspective over the last three decades:
The HDI is published by the United Nations Development Programme and this data is shown
in the time-series chart here.

Add other countries to see the change over time or compare development between
countries.

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX REPORT:

According to the latest Human Development Index, people living in the very high human
development countries can expect to live 19 years longer, and spend seven more years in
school, than those living in the group of low human development countries.

New York, 14 September 2018 – Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Ireland and Germany lead
the ranking of 189 countries and territories in the latest Human Development Index (HDI),
while Niger, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Chad and Burundi have the lowe st
scores in the HDI’s measurement of national achievements in health, education and income,
released today by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The overall trend globally is toward continued human development improvements, with
many countries moving up through the human development categories: out of the 189
countries for which the HDI is calculated, 59 countries are today in the very high human
development group and only 38 countries fall in the low HDI group. Just eight years ago in
2010, the figures were 46 and 49 countries respectively.
Ireland enjoyed the highest increase in HDI rank between 2012 and 2017 moving up 13 places,
while Turkey, the Dominican Republic and Botswana were also developing strongly, each
moving up eight places. All three steepest declines in human development ranking were
countries in conflict: the Syrian Arab Republic had the largest decrease in HDI rank, falling 27
places, followed by Libya (26 places), and Yemen (20 places).

Movements in the HDI are driven by changes in health, education and income. Health has
improved considerably as shown by life expectancy at birth which has increased by almost
seven years globally, with Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia showing the greatest progress,
each experiencing increases of about 11 years since 1990. And, today’s school-age children
can expect to be in school for 3.4 years longer than those in 1990.

Disparities between and within countries continue to stifle progress.

Average HDI levels have risen significantly since 1990 – 22 percent globally and 51 percent in
least developed countries – reflecting that on average people are living longer, are more
educated and have greater income. But there remain massive differences across the world in
people’s well-being.
A child born today in Norway, the country with the highest HDI, can expect to live beyond 82
years old and spend almost 18 years in school. While a child born in Niger, the country with
the lowest HDI, can expect only to live to 60 and spend just five years in school. Such striking
differences can be seen again and again.
“On average, a child born today in a country with low human development can expect to live
just over 60 years, while a child born in a country with very high human development can
expect to live to almost 80. Similarly, children in low human development countries can
expect to be in school seven years less than children in very high human development
countries,” said Achim Steiner UNDP Administrator. “While these statistics present a stark
picture in themselves, they also speak to the tragedy of millions of individuals whose lives are
affected by inequity and lost opportunities, neither of which are inevitable.”

A closer look at the HDI’s components sheds light on the unequal distribution of outcomes in
education, life expectancy and income within countries. The Inequality -Adjusted Human
Development Index allows one to compare levels of inequality within countries, and the
greater the inequality, the more a country’s HDI falls.

While significant inequality occurs in many countries, including in some of the wealthiest
ones, on average it takes a bigger toll on countries with lower human development levels.
Low and medium human development countries lose respectively 31 and 25 percent of their
human development level from inequality, while for very high human development countries,
the average loss is 11 percent.

“While there is ground for optimism that the gaps are narrowing, disparities in people’s well -
being are still unacceptably wide. Inequality in all its forms and dimensions, between and
within countries, limits people’s choices and opportunities, withholding progress,” said Selim
Jahan, Director of the Human Development Report Office at UNDP.
Gender gaps in early years are closing, but inequalities persist in adulthood.

One key source of inequality within countries is the gap in opportunities, achievements and
empowerment between women and men. Worldwide the average HDI for women is six
percent lower than for men, due to women’s lower income and educational attainment in
many countries.

Although there has been laudable progress in the number of girls attendin g school, there
remain big differences between other key aspects of men and women’s lives. Women’s
empowerment remains a particular challenge.

Global labor force participation rates for women are lower than for men – 49 percent versus
75 percent. And when women are in the labor market, their unemployment rates are 24
percent higher than their male counterparts. Women globally also do much more unpaid
domestic and care work than men.

Overall, women’s share of parliamentary seats remains low although it varie s across regions,
from 17.5 and 18 percent in South Asia and the Arab States, respectively; to 29 percent in
Latin America and Caribbean and OECD countries. Violence against women affects all
societies, and in some regions childhood marriage and high adole scence birth rates
undermine the opportunities for many young women and girls. In South Asia, 29 percent of
women between the ages of 20 and 24 were married before their 18th birthday.

High adolescent birth rates, early motherhood, and poor and unequal access to pre- and post-
natal health services result in a high maternal mortality ratio. At 101 per 1,000 live births, Sub -
Saharan Africa’s adolescent birth rate is more than twice the world average of 44 per 1,000
live births. Latin America and the Caribbean follows with 62 per 1,000 live births. Even though
Sub-Saharan Africa’s maternal mortality ratio is 549 deaths per 100,000 live births, some
countries in the region such as Cabo Verde have achieved a much lower rate (42 deaths per
100,000 live births).

Looking beyond the HDI at the Quality of Development.

There is tremendous variation between countries in the quality of education, healthcare and
many other key aspects of life.
In Sub-Saharan Africa there are on average 39 primary school pupils per teacher, followed by
South Asia with 35 pupils per teacher. But in OECD countries, East Asia and the Pacific, and
Europe and Central Asia there is an average of one teacher for every 16-18 primary school
pupils. And, while in OECD countries and East Asia and the Pacific there are on average 29 and
28 physicians for every 10,000 people respectively, in South Asia there are only eight, and in
Sub-Saharan Africa not even two.

“Much of the world’s attention is on data that tells only a part of the story about people’s
lives. For instance, it is increasingly clear that it is not enough simply to count how many
children are in school: we need also to know whether they are learning anything. Focusing on
quality is essential to foster sustainable and sustained human develop ment progress,”
concludes Mr. Jahan.
Key regional development trends, as shown by the HDI and other human
development indices:
Arab states: The region has seen a 25.5 percent increase in its HDI value since 1990. The Arab
States lose 25 percent of overall HDI value when adjusted for inequalities. The region also has
the second largest gender gap across all developing regions measured by the Gender
Development Index (GDI) (14.5 percent gap between men and women in the HDI). Women’s
labour force participation rate is the lowest among developing regions at 21 percent.

East Asia and the Pacific: The region registered the second highest growth in HDI at 41.8
percent between 1990 and 2017. However, when adjusted for inequality, it experienced a
15.6 percent loss in HDI. While the gender gap between men and women in HDI is 4.3 percent,
below the global average of six percent, women’s share of parliamentary seats remains one
of the lowest among developing regions at 19.8 percent, compared to the global average of
23.5 percent.

Europe and Central Asia: The region has an average HDI value of 0.771 – the highest among
the developing regions. The region also shows the lowest overall loss in HDI due to inequality
at 11.7 percent, similar to the rate of OECD countries (11.9 percent). And it registers the
lowest inequality between men and women among the developing regions as measured by
the GII. However, the labour force participation rate for women is still much lower than for
men (45.5 versus 70.3 percent), and women only hold 20.7 of the seats in parliament.
Latin America and the Caribbean: Latin America and the Caribbean enjoy high levels of human
development, second only to Europe and Central Asia. However, when adjusted for
inequality, the region’s HDI drops by 21.8 percent due to the unequal distribution of human
development, particularly in income. The region has the narrowest gap between men and
women in HDI at two percent, below the global average of six percent. However, it has the
second highest adolescent birth rate and the labour force participation rate for women is
significantly lower than for men (51.6 vs 77.5 percent).

South Asia: South Asia experienced the fastest HDI growth among developing regions with a
45.3 percent increase since 1990. During that period, life expectancy grew by 10.8 years, as
did expected years of schooling for children (by 21 percent). The loss in HDI due to inequalities
is about 26 percent. South Asia has the widest gap between men and women in HDI at 16.3
percent.
Sub-Saharan Africa: The region has seen a 35 percent growth in HDI since 1990. Twelve
countries in the region are now in the medium human development group, and four countries
– Botswana, Gabon, Mauritius and Seychelles – are now in the high human development
group. Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest regional loss due to inequality (31 percent).
Rwanda has the largest share of seats in parliament in the world held by women (55.7
percent).
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX RANKING: INDIA
India inched up one spot to rank 129th out of 189 countries on the 2019 Human Development
Index (HDI) released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP ). India’s HDI for
2018 improved to 0.647 compared to 0.640 the year before. Inequality and deprivation
continue to be high in the country. Within South Asia, India's human development index (HDI)
value is above the average of 0.638 for the region, with Bangladesh and Pakistan, countries
with similar population size, being ranked 136 and 150 respectively.
In 2016, India's HDI value of 0.624 put it at 131 rank.

The HDI is a summary measure for assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of
human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of
living.

India's HDI value for 2017 is 0.640, which put the country in the medium human
development category, according to the Human Development Report (HDR) released by the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Between 1990 and 2017, India's HDI value increased from 0.427 to 0.640, an increase of
nearly 50 per cent and an indicator of the country's remarkable achievement in lifting
millions of people out of poverty, the report said.

Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Ireland and Germany led the ranking, while Niger, the
Central African Republic, South Sudan, Chad and Burundi have the lowest scores in the HDI's
measurement of national achievements in health, education and income.
The overall trend globally is toward continued human development improvements, with
many countries moving up through the human development categories: out of the 189
countries for which the HDI is calculated, 59 countries are today in the very high human
development group and only 38 countries fall in the low HDI group, it said.

Between 1990 and 2017, India's life expectancy at birth increased by nearly 11 years, with
even more significant gains in expected years of schooling.
Today's Indian school-age children can expect to stay in school for 4.7 years longer than in
1990.
Whereas, India's gross national income per capita increased by a staggering 266.6 per cent
between 1990 and 2017.
About 26.8 per cent of India's HDI value is lost on account of inequalities.

This confirms that inequality remains a challenge for India as it progresses economically,
though the government and various state governments have, through a variety of social
protection measures, attempted to ensure that the gains of economic development are
shared widely and reach the farthest first.

In India, despite considerable progress at the policy and legislative level s, women remain
significantly less politically, economically and socially empowered than men.
For instance, women hold only 11.6 per cent of parliamentary seats, and only 39 per cent of
adult women have reached at least a secondary level of education as compared to 64 per cent
males.
Female participation in the labour market is 27.2 per cent compared to 78.8 for men.
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 James C. Riley (2005) – Estimates of Regional and Global Life Expectancy, 1800–2001.
Issue Population and Development Review. Population and Development Review.
Volume 31, Issue 3, pages 537–543, September 2005.

 Prados de la Escosura, L. (2015) – World human development: 1870–2007. Available

at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/roiw.12104

 https://reliefweb.int/report/world/human-development-indices-and-indicators-2018-
statistical-update