The-Human-Development-Report

TheHumanDevelopmentReport(HDR)isanannualmilestonepublishedbytheHumanDevelopmentReportOfficeoftheUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme(UNDP).[2]Asof2013thelastdecadesawconvergenceinhumandevelopmentindicators(HDI)valuesglobally,althoughprogresswasunevenwithinandbetweenregions.Developingcountries'transformationintomajoreconomieswithgrowingpoliticalinfluencehasimpactedhumandevelopmentprogress.[3]Projectionsinthe2013reportsuggestedthatby2020thecombinedeconomicoutputofthreeleadingdevelopingcountriesalone—Brazil,ChinaandIndia—willsurpasstheaggregateproductionofCanada,France,Germany,Italy,theUnitedKingdomandtheUnitedStates.Thisshifthasrelatedtotradeandtechnologypartnershipsbetweenemergingeconomies.[4]Howevereconomicgrowthdoesnotautomaticallytranslateintohumandevelopmentprogress,soreportshavehighlightedtheneedforpro-poorpoliciesandinvestmentsincapacitybuildingwithafocusoneducation,nutrition,healthandemploymentskills.The2013reportidentifiedfourareasoffocusforsustainabledevelopment:enhancingequity,includingonthegenderdimension;enablinggreatervoiceandparticipationofcitizens,includingyouth;confrontingenvironmentalpressures;andmanagingdemographicchange.Italsocritiquedglobalgovernanceandoutdatedinstitutionsthatdonotdoreflecteconomicandgeopoliticalreality.Thereportwasfirstlaunchedin1990bythePakistanieconomistMahbubulHaqandIndianNobellaureateAmartyaSen.[1]Itsgoalwastoplacepeopleatthecenterofthedevelopmentprocessintermsofeconomicdebate,policyandadvocacy.Developmentwascharacterizedbytheprovisionofchoicesandfreedomsresultinginwidespreadoutcomes.“Peoplearetherealwealthofanation,”Haqwroteintheopeninglinesofthefirstreportin1990.“Thebasicobjectiveofdevelopmentistocreateanenablingenvironmentforpeopletoenjoylong,healthyandcreativelives.Thismayappeartobeasimpletruth.Butitisoftenforgottenintheimmediateconcernwiththeaccumulationofcommoditiesandfinancialwealth.”TheUnitedNationsGeneralAssemblyhasformallyrecognizedtheReportas“anindependentintellectualexercise”and“animportanttoolforraisingawarenessabouthumandevelopmentaroundtheworld.”TheHumanDevelopmentReportisanindependentreport,commissionedbytheUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme(UNDP),andistheproductofaselectedteamofleadingscholars,developmentpractitionersandmembersoftheHumanDevelopmentReportOfficeofUNDP.ItisareportindependentoftheAdministratoroftheUNDP,assuggestedbyUlHaq.[5]Itistranslatedintonumerouslanguagesandlaunchedinmorethan100countriesannually.[1]Since1990,morethan140countrieshavepublishedsome600nationalHumanDevelopmentReports,withUNDPsupport.UNDPhasalsosponsoredscoresofregionalreports,suchastheten-volumeArabHumanDevelopmentReportseries,whichhavemadeinternationallyrecognizedcontributionstotheglobaldialogueondemocracy,women’srights,inequality,povertyeradicationandothercriticalissues.The2010HumanDevelopmentReport’sreviewofhumandevelopmenttrendsshowedthatmostdevelopingcountriesmadedramaticyetoftenunderestimatedprogressinhealth,educationandbasiclivingstandardssince1970withmanyofthepoorestcountriespostingthegreatestgains.Inthe2010Report,theSultanateofOmanwasreportedtobethemostimprovedcountryinthepast40yearsoutofthe135countriesassessed(thereportreportedonimprovementintheperiod1970-2010).Oman'sstridesineducation,womenempowermentandhealthcareunderthepatronageofthecurrentSultanofOmanledtoitsecuringthe1stposition.Severalnewindiceshavebeenintroducedovertheyearsindifferentreports,includingtheHumanDevelopmentIndex,theGender-relatedDevelopmentIndex,theGenderEmpowermentMeasure,theHumanPovertyIndex.[1]TheGender-relatedDevelopmentIndex,theGenderEmpowermentMeasureandtheHumanPovertyIndexwereremovedin2010.The2010HumanDevelopmentReportintroducedthreenewindicestheInequality-adjustedHumanDevelopmentIndex,theGenderInequalityIndex,andtheMultidimensionalPovertyIndex.EachReporthasitsownfocusdrawnfromcontemporarydebate.The2009HumanDevelopmentReport,OvercomingBarriers,focusedonmigration-bothwithinandbeyondborders.Itwaschosenbecauseitisaprominentthemeindomesticandinternationaldebates.Itsstartingpointisthattheglobaldistributionofcapabilitiesisextraordinarilyunequal,andthatthisisamajordriverformovementofpeople.