Transcript The Human Development Index

The Human
Development Index
What is it?
- A yearly comparison of the development
of nations around the world
- A combined measure of 3 major areas:
1. Health (Life expectancy,
Infant Mortality, etc.)
2. Standard of living (GDP per
person, public debt, etc.)
3. Knowledge (Literacy Rate,
enrolment rates in school,
etc.)
Over 100 statistics are weighted
and combined to generate a
number between 0 and 1
•A HDI below 0.5 is considered to
represent low development
•A HDI of 0.8 or more is
considered to represent high
development
What does it say?
-Citizens of most countries are
living better lives today than they
did 25 years ago
-Some nations are
falling behind in
development (the gap
between the “haves”
and the “have nots” is
widening)
World map indicating HDI of nation-states,
2005. The colour generalisation graduates
from green (for high development), to yellow
and orange (for medium development), to
red (for low development).
“Most Livable” Countries, 2007
1.
Iceland
11.
Finland
2.
Norway
12.
United States
3.
Australia
13.
Spain
4.
Canada
14.
Denmark
5.
Ireland
15.
Austria
6.
Sweden
16.
United Kingdom
7.
Switzerland
17.
Belgium
8.
Japan
18.
Luxembourg
9.
Netherlands
19.
New Zealand
10.
France
20.
Italy
“Least Livable” Countries, 2007
1. Sierra Leone
2. Burkina Faso
3.
Guinea-Bissau
4. Niger
5. Mali
6. Mozambique
7. Central African Republic
8. Chad
9. Ethiopia
10. Congo, Dem. Rep. of
LINK TO 2006 RANKINGS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index
Some HDI Indicators
• GDP (Gross Domestic Product): Total value of
goods and services produced within a country
• Life Expectancy: Average lifespan of the
population
• Literacy Rate: Rate of the population that has
the ability to read and write
• Food Supply: Amount of energy (food)
adequate to sustain the population
• Doctors per Person
Categorization of Countries
Countries are placed in a category:
• DEVELOPED (High Human Develpment): A
country with a highly developed economy. High
incomes and abundance of food, good housing
and many luxuries.
• NEWLY INDUSTRIALIZED (Medium Human
Development): Countries are in the transition
stage between developed and developing.
Growing economies.
• DEVELOPING (Low Human Development): A
country with a poorly developed economy. Low
incomes, shortages of food, poor housing and
people cannot afford luxuries.