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HDImap2006

World map indicating Human Development Index (2004).

██ high (0.800–1)

██ medium (0.500–0.799)

██ low (0.300–0.499)

██ n/a

(colour-blind compliant map)

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standard of living for countries worldwide. It is a standard means of measuring well-being, especially child welfare. It is used to determine and indicate whether a country is a developed, developing, or underdeveloped country and also to measure the impact of economic policies on quality of life.[1] The index was developed in 1990 by Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq and has been used since 1993 by the United Nations Development Programme in its annual Human Development Report.

The HDI measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development:

  • A long and healthy life, as measured by life expectancy at birth.
  • Knowledge, as measured by the adult literacy rate (with two-thirds weight) and the combined primary, secondary, and tertiary gross enrollment ratio (with one-third weight).
  • A decent standard of living, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP) per capita at purchasing power parity (PPP) in USD.

Each year, UN member states are listed and ranked according to these measures. Those high on the list often advertise it (e.g., Jean Chrétien, Former Prime Minister of Canada [1]), as a means of attracting talented immigrants (economically, individual capital) or discouraging emigration.

An alternative measure, focusing on the amount of poverty in a country, is the Human Poverty Index.

Methodology[]

In general to transform a raw variable, say , into a unit-free index between 0 and 1 (which allows different indices to be added together), the following formula is used:

  • -index =

where and are the lowest and highest values the variable can attain, respectively.

The Human Development Index (HDI) then represents the average of the following three general indices:

  • Life Expectancy Index =
  • Education Index =
    • Adult Literacy Index (ALI) =
    • Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) =
  • GDP Index =

LE: Life expectancy
ALR: Adult literacy rate
CGER: Combined gross enrollment ratio
GDPpc: GDP per capita at PPP in USD

UNDP has created a technical note on the definition of the HDI (see links below).

2006 report[]

HDImap spectrum2006

Coloured world map indicating Human Development Index (2004)

██ 0.950 and over ██ 0.900–0.949 ██ 0.850–0.899 ██ 0.800–0.849 ██ 0.750–0.799 ██ 0.700–0.749 ██ 0.650–0.699 ██ 0.600–0.649 ██ 0.550–0.599 ██ 0.500–0.549 ██ 0.450–0.499 ██ 0.400–0.449 ██ 0.350–0.399 ██ 0.300–0.349 ██ under 0.300 ██ N/A
(colour-blind compliant map)

The report for 2006 was launched in Cape Town, South Africa on November 9 2006. Its focus was on "power, poverty and the global water crisis." [2] Most of the data used for the report are derived largely from 2004 or earlier, thus indicating an HDI for 2004. Not all UN member states choose to or are able to provide the necessary statistics.

The report showed a stagnation in world HDI, as the continued improvement of developed countries was offset by a general decline of the developing world. Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia showed an important decline in HDI, in comparison with last year's report. Other developing regions showed little to no improvement.

A HDI below 0.5 is considered to represent low development and 29 of the 31 countries in that category are located in Africa, with the exceptions of Haiti and Yemen. The bottom ten countries are all in Africa. The highest-scoring Sub-Saharan countries, Equatorial Guinea and South Africa, are ranked 120th and 121st, respectively (with a shared HDI of 0.653).

A HDI of 0.8 or more is considered to represent high development. This includes all developed countries, such as those in North America, Europe, Oceania, and Eastern Asia, as well as some developing countries in Eastern Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and the oil-rich Arabian Peninsula.


Top thirty countries (HDI range from 0.965 down to 0.885)[]

  1. [[Image:Template:Country flag alias Norway|22x20px|Flag of Template:Country alias Norway]] [[Template:Country alias Norway|Template:Country shortname alias Norway]] 0.965 (Straight Line Steady )
  2. Template:Country data Iceland 0.960 (Straight Line Steady )
  3. Template:Country data Australia 0.957 (Straight Line Steady )
  4. Template:Country data Republic of Ireland 0.956 (Green Arrow Up Darker 4)
  5. Template:Country data Sweden 0.951 (Green Arrow Up Darker 1)
  6. Template:Country data Canada 0.950 (Green Arrow Up Darker 1)
  7. Template:Country data Japan 0.949 (Green Arrow Up Darker 4)
  8. Template:Country data United States 0.948 (Green Arrow Up Darker 2)
  9. Template:Country data Netherlands 0.947 (Green Arrow Up Darker 2)
    1. REDIRECT Template:CHE
    0.947 (Straight Line Steady )
  1. Template:Country data Finland 0.947 (Green Arrow Up Darker 2)
  2. Template:Country data Luxembourg 0.945 (Red Arrow Down 8)
  3. Template:Country data Belgium 0.945 (Red Arrow Down 4)
  4. Template:Country flag2 0.944 (Green Arrow Up Darker 3)
    1. REDIRECT Template:DNK
    0.943 (Red Arrow Down 1)
  5. Template:Country data France 0.942 (Straight Line Steady )
  6. Template:Country flag2 0.940 (Green Arrow Up Darker 1)
  7. Template:Country data Italy 0.940 (Red Arrow Down 3)
  8. Template:Country data Spain 0.938 (Green Arrow Up Darker 2)
  9. Template:Country data New Zealand 0.936 (Red Arrow Down 1)

    1. REDIRECT Template:DEU
    0.932 (Red Arrow Down 1)
  1. Template:Country data Hong Kong 0.927 (Straight Line Steady )
  2. Template:Country data Israel 0.927 (Straight Line Steady )
  3. Template:Country data Greece 0.921 (Straight Line Steady )
    1. REDIRECT Template:SGP
    0.916 (Straight Line Steady )
  4. Template:Country data South Korea 0.912 (Green Arrow Up Darker 2)
  5. Template:Country data Slovenia 0.910 (Red Arrow Down 1)
    1. REDIRECT Template:PRT
    0.904 (Red Arrow Down 1)
  6. Template:Country data Cyprus 0.903 (Straight Line Steady )
  7. Template:Country data Czech Republic 0.885 (Green Arrow Up Darker 1)

Top/bottom three countries by region[]

Africa

047.

  1. REDIRECT Template:SYC
0.842 (Green Arrow Up Darker
4)

063.

  1. REDIRECT Template:MUS
0.800 (Green Arrow Up Darker
2)

064.

  1. REDIRECT Template:LBY
0.798 (Red Arrow Down
6)

...
175. Template:Country data Mali

0.338 (Red Arrow Down
1)

176. Template:Country data Sierra Leone

0.335 (Straight Line Steady

)
177.

  1. REDIRECT Template:NER
0.311 (Straight Line Steady

)

Asia

007. Template:Country data Japan

0.949 (Green Arrow Up Darker
4)

022. Template:Country data Hong Kong

SAR 0.927 (Straight Line Steady

)
023. Template:Country data Israel

0.927 (Straight Line Steady

)
...
138.

  1. REDIRECT Template:NPL
0.527 (Red Arrow Down
2)

142. Template:Country data Timor-Leste

0.512 (Red Arrow Down
2)

150. Template:Country data Yemen

0.492 (Green Arrow Up Darker
1)
Europe

001. [[Image:Template:Country flag alias Norway|22x20px|Flag of Template:Country alias Norway]] [[Template:Country alias Norway|Template:Country shortname alias Norway]] 0.965 (Straight Line Steady )
002. Template:Country data Iceland

0.960 (Straight Line Steady

)
004. Template:Country data Republic of Ireland

0.956 (Green Arrow Up Darker
4)

...
097. Template:Country data Georgia

0.743 (Green Arrow Up Darker
3)

099. Template:Country data Azerbaijan

0.736 (Green Arrow Up Darker
2)

114. Template:MOL 0.694 (Green Arrow Up Darker

1)
North America

006. Template:Country data Canada

0.950 (Green Arrow Up Darker
1)

008. Template:Country data United States

0.948 (Green Arrow Up Darker
2)

031.

  1. REDIRECT Template:BRB
0.879 (Red Arrow Down
1)

...
117.

  1. REDIRECT Template:HND
0.683 (Red Arrow Down
1)

118.

  1. REDIRECT Template:GTM
0.673 (Red Arrow Down
1)

154.

  1. REDIRECT Template:HTI
0.482 (Red Arrow Down
1)
Oceania

003. Template:Country data Australia

0.957 (Straight Line Steady

)
020. Template:Country data New Zealand

0.936 (Red Arrow Down
1)

055.

  1. REDIRECT Template:TON
0.815 (Red Arrow Down
1)

...
119.

  1. REDIRECT Template:VUT
0.670 (Red Arrow Down
1)

128.

  1. REDIRECT Template:SLB
0.592 (Straight Line Steady

)
139. Template:Country data Papua New Guinea

0.523 (Red Arrow Down
2)
South America

036. Template:Country data Argentina

0.863 (Red Arrow Down
2)

038.

  1. REDIRECT Template:CHL
0.859 (Red Arrow Down
1)

043. Template:Country data Uruguay

0.851 (Green Arrow Up Darker
3)

...
091.

  1. REDIRECT Template:PRY
0.757 (Red Arrow Down
3)

103. Template:Country data Guyana

0.725 (Green Arrow Up Darker
4)

115. Template:Country data Bolivia

0.692 (Red Arrow Down
2)

Countries not included[]

The following countries or territories are not ranked in the 2006 Human Development Index, for being unable or unwilling to provide the necessary data, or for not being recognised as states by the United Nations.

Africa

  • Template:Country data Liberia


  • Template:Country data Somalia


  •  Western Sahara


Asia

  • Template:Country data Afghanistan


  • Template:Country data Iraq


  • Template:Country data Macau
(SAR)  [2]

Europe

  • Template:Country data Andorra


  • Template:Country data Liechtenstein


  1. REDIRECT Template:MCO
  • Template:Country data Montenegro


  • Template:Country data San Marino


  • Template:Country data Serbia


  • Template:Country data Vatican City


Oceania

  • Template:Country data Kiribati


  • Template:Country data Marshall Islands


  • Template:Country data Federated States of Micronesia


  • Template:Country data Nauru


  • Template:Country data Palau


  • Template:Country data Tuvalu


Past top countries[]

The number one ranked country in each year of the index.

  • 2006Template:Country data Norway
  • 2005Template:Country data Norway
  • 2004Template:Country data Norway
  • 2003Template:Country data Norway


  • 2002Template:Country data Norway
  • 2001Template:Country data Norway
  • 2000Template:Country data Canada
  • 1999Template:Country data Canada
  • 1998Template:Country data Canada


  • 1997Template:Country data Canada
  • 1996Template:Country data Canada
  • 1995Template:Country data Canada
  • 1994Template:Country data Canada
  • 1993Template:Country data Japan


  • 1992Template:Country data Canada
  • 1991Template:Country data Japan
  • 1990Template:Country data Canada
  • 1985Template:Country data Canada
  • 1980Template:Country data Switzerland


References[]

See also[]

External links[]


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