4.3.1 Measures of development

3 dimensions of Human Development Index & how they are measured and combined

UN HDI = most important/well known composite indicator

• takes GNI per capita, life expectancy, literacy rate, average years of schooling

• Value between 0 & 1, then countries divided into categories - very high / high/ medium / low development

  • Highest HDI: Iceland & Norway (0.970)

  • Lowest HDI: South Sudan (0.388)

Other indicators of development (other composite indicators)

Gender inequality index

• Adolescent birth rate, female vs male with secondary education, maternal mortality ratio

Happy Planet index

• (life expectancy x self-reported happiness) / ecological footprint per capita

Advantages of HDI to compare levels of development between countries & over time

• one single stat, but calculated from a number of others

• Perfect compromise as if pick only a few components - may not get a full picture ; too many - difficult to get a clear picture (info overload)

Limitations of HDI

1) only considers 3 aspects of a country’s development - education, health, income

• Therefore, leaves out other important categories of info - ie. Environment, happiness, availability & quality of water

2) Health data aspect is insufficient - only life expectancy

• some countries live long but poor health

• Therefore doesn’t tell about healthcare systems (ie. How long do people have to wait, how many doctors in hospital)