Transcript human development index

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX
IB ECONOMICS
HDI Report 2014
What
does the
cartoon
say
about
GDP
growth?
Source: http://addisfortune.net/columns/human-development-must-top-economic-policy-agendas/
What’s wrong with GDP??
Which of the following activities increases GDP &
economic growth in a country?
An increase in weapons/arms production.
 An increase in the number of casinos built
in the country.
 An increase in tobacco production.
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Human Development Index
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A composite indicator of development
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“composite” = several different components are used to
derive a single numerical number to rank countries.
Fun facts
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It was created by Pakistan Economist Mahub ul Haq &
Indian Economist Amartya Sen in 1990.
It has been published ever since by the United Nations
Development Program
Each of these categories has a 1/3 weight.
http://buddhajeans.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/human-development-index-diagram-1024.png
Education Component / also called
the Knowledge Component:
The Categories of the HDI &
HDI Value Ranges
Very High Human Development
 Countries must score .800 & above
High Human Development
 Countries must score from .700 to .799.
Medium Human Developent
 Countries must score from .550 to .699
Low Human Development
 Any country with a score less than .550.
Look at the Wikipedia entries on (1) “List of Countries by HDI” and (2) “List of
Countries by Inequality-Adjusted HDI.” What do you notice?
http://hetq.am/static/news/b/2013/03/24598.jpg
HDI Table – Quick Questions
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5.
Where are the dragon and the elephant on the list?
Which member of the BRICS has the lowest ranking?
What three countries in Latin America are considered
to have “Very High Human Development”? What
country really is a surprise on this list??
How many countries in Asia are in the Very High
Development Category?
True or False: In the low Human Development
category, every country is in Africa or Asia.
Source: HDI Report 2014, p36
Problems? Solutions?
Is this the best way to measure development?
Is it better than looking @ GNP per capita?
***Dig Deeper***
Explore the following slides to learn more about
the HDI & Inequality-Adjusted HDI
Discussion in Pairs:
The 2014 Theme is Reducing Vulnerabilities & Building
Resilience.
What do you think vulnerabilities is referring to?
Specific events??
What is resilience?
How would you build this??
http://www.ss.undp.org/content/dam/turkmenistan/img/other/tkm_HDR2014_wide.png/_jcr_content/renditions/cq5dam.web.699.470.png
HDI figures
can differ
significantly
even in a
developed
country!!
1. Which US States
appear to have the
highest HDI
ranking?
1. Which US States
appear to the the
lowest ranking?
http://clatl.com/imager/width/b/slideshow/1449566/3156/human-development-index-by-state-map.jpg
3. Why do you think there are differences in the HDI between US states?
Korean Students
We need your help!!.
Why do you think
South Korea was the
country that saw the
greatest improvement
in HDI from 1990 to
2012?
http://blogimg.goo.ne.jp/user_image/72/2d/079772f23889a2
0f69c19e343a1a5dce.png
What is
the main
message
from this
table?
Source: HDI Report, 2014, p37
Source: http://www.statista.com/chart/2504/human-development-index/
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p160
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p164
Criticism of the HDI Index??
One of the biggest criticisms of the HDI,
was the fact that it did not consider the
issue of inequality with a country and
between countries?
 What is inequality???

The Inequality Adjusted HDI (IHDI)
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The Inequality adjusted HDI looks beyond the average
achievement of health, education and income, to show
how these are distributed amount its residents.
For example, if the top 10% of the population
controlled 90% of the countries wealth/income, there
would be a high level of inequality.
The IHDI can be interpreted as the level of human
development when inequality is taken into account.
Some countries that rank highly on the HDI (e.g. US at
position #5 drops to #28 when IHDI is applied.
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p168
Source HDI Report, 2014, p40
INEQUALITY IN THE UNITED STATES
Why does
the US
drop from
5 to 28 on
the
Inequality
adjusted
HDI?
Source: http://www.humantific.com/tag/measure-of-america/
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p38
Criticism of the HDI Index:
Time Lag in Collecting Data
The 2014 HDI Report is still using data from 2011!!
Why???? (Read below)
Criticism of the HDI Index:
The Development Categories are Misleading
The HDI Index classifies many developing countries
as having a “High Level of Development” and this
includes China, where about 700 million people live
on about $2 per day.
 Just because people are well educated and attend
school, does it mean or does it not mean there is a
high level of development???
 Do you think countries would protest if the HDI
categories were renamed?

Criticism of the HDI Index
Is it the best measure of development?
NO, but it is better than GDP or GDI in
isolation.
 The HDI should be viewed in conjunction
with a range of other composite and
economic indicators, to achieve a holistic
view of a country’s relative development
and economic performance.
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GROUP ACTIVITY: DEVISE A NEW HDI INDEX:
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You (and two friends) have just been employed on trial
program by the UNDP (United Nations Development
Program) to devise a new/alternative index to the HDI
Well it will probably need a new name!!.
Try to think of 3 to 5 new indicators you would include
to evaluate / assess the development of a country.
Justify your inclusion of each indicator.
Would every indicator have the same weight?
What would you call the index?
Present your findings to the panel of UNDP.
Note: You are competing against the other teams for a
permanent job at UNDP.
GROUP ACTIVITY:
DEVISE A NEW HDI INDEX
Defending Your Choices – Tough Questions from Your
Opponents!!
 At the end of your presentation, your opponents
should try to destroy / undermine your choice of
indicators.
 They should question/challenge your selection of
indicators and give some reason for this opposition.
 Your team will score points for arguing &
challenging the opposing team.
Issues to consider???
When selecting indicators, think about the following:
 Would it be easier to collect data about this
information in all countries?
 You should try to focus on indicators that relate to
directly to the development/progress of people
and their life opportunities.
 The indicators you select must be able to compared
between countries.
Source: HDI Report, 2014, p35
Source: HDI Report 2014, p36
Source: HDI Report 2014, p34.
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p72
Source: Human Development Report, 2014, p26
Source: HDI Report, 2014, p82
Source: Human Development Report, 2014, p19
Source: HDI Report 2014, p61
Source: Human Development Report, 2014: p57
Source: Human Development Report, 2014, p26
Source: HDI Report, 2014: p124