Pakistan's Trust Gauge Runs on Empty Oct 8, 2009
On the U.N. Human Development Index, Afghanistan now ranks 181 out of 182 countries; only Niger was lower. Pakistani newspapers, especially the Urdu-language publications, constantly question U.S. intentions about what they call the mingy U.S. aid package of $1. (Newsmax)
Pelosi says new tax is 'on the table' Oct 7, 2009
Wednesday, October 07, 2009. Pelosi says new tax is 'on the table. (TheHill.com)
It's rich who lead the immigration pack Oct 6, 2009
The report, which focuses on migration, shows that the median emigration rate for countries with low Human Development Index (HDI) is only about one-third the median rate of countries with high HDI. ... According to the report, about 60% of those surveyed in almost all countries, no matter what their human development index, felt ethnic diversity helped enrich life. (India Times, India -- Community News)
Australia Rises to Second in UN Quality of Life Index, Australian Reports Oct 6, 2009
Only Norway came out ahead of Australia in this years human development index, which measures education, health and life expectancy, as well as economic factors, the newspaper said, citing the UN index report. To contact the reporter on this story: in Sydney at. (Bloomberg -- Australia & New Zealand)
Niger 'world's worst place to live' Oct 6, 2009
However the UN human development index used data collected in 2007 - before the global economic crisis. Opposites. (BBC News -- Africa)
UN: Norway is best place to live, China moves up... Oct 6, 2009
The top 21 ranked states in the latest Human Development Index, which refers to data compiled in 2007, was prior to the world economic crisis. Share this article. (The Drudge Report)
Life sucks in India: Ranked 134 on UN development index Oct 6, 2009
India at No 134 on UN Human Development Index- Indicators-Economy-News-The Economic Times ... India at No 134 on UN Human Development Index6 Oct 2009, 0231 hrs IST, ET Bureau ... NEW DELHI: India might be the fastest growing economy in the world after China, but the quality of life in India still leaves much to be desired, with the country 00004000 ranked a measly 134 among 182 countries on the Human Development Index (HDI) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (India Times)
* Norway tops UNs human development index; China and Colombia move up Oct 6, 2009
Norway tops UNs human development index; China and Colombia move up ... Norway took the No. 1 spot in the annual UN human development index released yesterday but China has made the biggest strides in improving the well-being of its citizens. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
India ranks 134 on UN development index Oct 6, 2009
The report ranks countries according to the Human Development Index (HDI), a summary measure of well-being based on life expectancy, literacy, school enrolment and GDP per capita ... Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia questioned UNDPs methodology for measuring human development index (HDI) and sought inclusion of additional parameters for the data relating to migration ... In the latest Human Development Index released on Monday, India has been ranked 134 among 182... (India Times, India)
PM invites public to give ideas for Budget Oct 3, 2009
To achieve Vision 2020, he said Malaysia must become both a high-income economy, as defined by the World Bank, and attain a higher human development index score reflecting our status as a developed nation. . (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
PM invites public to give ideas for budget 2010 Oct 2, 2009
" Despite having successfully weathered difficulties, such as the 1997 Asian economic crisis, and having proven that the economy was resilient in the current global financial crisis, "much work remains before we can call ourselves a fully developed nation by 2020," Najib said. He said to achieve the Vision 2020, Malaysia must both become a high income economy, as defined by the World Bank, and attain a higher human development index score "reflecting our status as a developed nation. " "We have... (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
May the GDP R.I.P. Oct 2, 2009
The United Nations came up with the Human Development Index, including life expectancy and literacy. The mountain country of Bhutan has a Gross Happiness Index, which honors not just material but spiritual development. (Boston Globe)
Converting trash into biofuel may cut CO2 emissions by 80% Oct 1, 2009
The team used the United Nation's Human Development Index to estimate the generation of waste in 173 countries. This data was then coupled to the Earthtrends database to estimate the amount of gasoline consumed in those same countries. (India Times, India)
Malawi: President 'Determined' to Lead Country Out of Poverty [interview] Sep 30, 2009
How do you reconcile that with the fact that Malawi ranks quite low on the Human Development Index and other poverty gauges. We are saying we are an economic miracle because, five years ago, we were an economic pariah. (allAfrica.com)
De Beers slammed on Botswana mines Sep 25, 2009
In response to what it describes as De Beers' "dismissive and trivialising" reaction, the foundation referred to a UN Development Report for 2007/08, which incorporates a Human Development Index and which places Botswana at position out of 177 countries. The same UN report describes Botswana as one of the most unequal societies in the world. (Business Report, South Africa)
Nkrumah in Retrospect: A Rejoinder Sep 22, 2009
Libya has been ruled by Muammar al-Gaddafi for the past 30 years, and it has the highest human development index in Africa. Of course, these leaders made mistakes along the way. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Most of India's urban poor are in Maha Sep 22, 2009
"On the one hand, Maharashtra has claimed the status of a developed state and is ranked second or third in the human development index. But the maximum number of poor only points towards misplaced policies and government schemes. Rather than benefiting the lowest stratum of society, the government ends up downgrading its economic status and there is a huge difference between the claimed status of the state and what is on the ground,'' said Simpreet Singh of the National Alliance of People's... (India Times)
Sri Lanka to resettle 80 pct of refugees by yearend-UN Sep 20, 2009
Sat, 20:49 19 Sep 2009 GMT. COLOMBO, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka still aims to release 70-80 percent of war refugees by the end of year, the U.N. top political official said on Friday, but voiced concern over the lack of freedom in camps for people displaced by fighting. (AlertNet)
UN climate summit to lay all cards on table Sep 19, 2009
Take Mali for example, where Diarra is from -- a landlocked developing country in Western Africa that ranked 169 out of 177 countries in the 2008 UNDP Human Development Index. After Egypt, Mali is the second largest cotton producer in Africa but its lack of access to the ocean puts it at a competitive disadvantage, said Diarra. (Xinhuanet, China)
Angola: Rich and Poor - One Country but Worlds Apart Sep 18, 2009
According to the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), which measures citizens' wealth, education and life expectancy, Angola is showing little sign of life improvement, despite its oil riches. The index goes from zero, meaning no human development, to one, meaning full human development. (allAfrica.com)
True Leadership Key To Africas Development - Rawlings Sep 7, 2009
The former President lamented that Ghanas Human Development Index fell during the four years of the Kufuor administration and said there always has to be a social democratic approach to governance. Social democracy does not reject capitalism but indeed welcomes it as long as it is also subject to accountability and probity. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Is the West's baby bust being busted? Sep 4, 2009
In countries that attain an extremely high Human Development Index (HDI) a United Nations metric that factors in education and income levels, along with average life spans the fertility rate is actually going up again. Countries such as Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, and Sweden are beginning to swing back toward replacement fertility levels, though a high HDI alone may not be enough to return them to population stability, let alone growth. (Christian Science Monitor)
A day to celebrate and mourn Aug 29, 2009
The country is the poorest in Asia, ranking 158th on the UN Human Development Index, and the rebuilding process has been painfully slow. Equally painful has been the price of good relations with Indonesia. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
PM: Anything less than 8% in next 10 years will delay developed nation status Aug 29, 2009
The first requires surpassing the threshold to become a higher-income economy and secondly, as an advanced economy, we must attain the International Monetary Fund ranking of a higher human development index score. . (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
Forget Shanghai, Mumbai can't match Colombo Aug 29, 2009
The parameters are the same as those used by the UN to compile its Human Development Index. While we all know that cities like Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong are ahead of us when it comes to development, its rather telling that a city in Sri Lanka could have a higher Human Development Index when compared to Mumbai, which has standards of living that are amongst the highest in India, said Nitai Mehta, managing trustee, Praja. (India Times, India)
Israel says hopes to resume Palestinian talks soon Aug 27, 2009
Thu, 04:50 27 Aug 2009 GMT. Israel sees progress towards restarting peace talks. (AlertNet)
What About the BRICs? Aug 26, 2009
Brazil and Russia rank at midpoint in the 179 country United Nations Human Development Index; China is just slightly below and India, alas, is almost at the bottom. And Russia and China face demographic challenges. (YaleGlobal Online Magazine, CT)
Why so poor? Aug 24, 2009
I was asked to investigate why it is that every single African country - with the exceptions of oil-rich Gabon and Algeria - is classified by the United Nations as having a "low" broadly defined Human Development Index - in other words an appalling standard of living for most of the people. In Pibor, the answer to why the place is poor seems fairly obvious. (BBC News -- Africa)
Central African Republic: Children At Edge of Survival, Says Unicef Aug 13, 2009
CAR is ranked 178 out of 179 on the UN Human Development Index. One in five children dies before the age of five and fewer than half complete primary school. (allAfrica.com)
Osafo Marfo on competence and loyalty Aug 10, 2009
The State of Our Development: Mr. Chairman, according to the Human Development Index (HDI) compiled by the UNDP which measures development beyond the mathematics of gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate but rather uses well-being captured in long living and healthy life (access to quality health), education (literacy and enrolment rates) and decent standard of living (signifying our purchasing power and incomes power), as at 2008 the HDI of Ghana was 0. 533. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Science: Wealth and breeding Aug 7, 2009
The other was the human development index for that country. The HDI, a measure used by the United Nations, has three components: life expectancy; average income per person; and level of education. (The Economist)
Challenging conventional wisdom: advances in development reverse fertility declines, says Penn study Aug 6, 2009
Researchers looked at total fertility rate and the human development index, HDI, in 24 developed countries during a 30-year period. The data demonstrated that the well-established negative relationship between fertility and development has been reversing as the global population entered the 21st century. (EurekAlert!)
Richest Nations Seeing Modest Baby Boom Aug 6, 2009
The further these and other countries advanced along a widely used measure of social progress called the Human Development Index (HDI), earlier studies showed, the fewer babies were born per woman. The HDI scale takes into account life expectancy, GDP per capita and literacy rates, and runs from zero to 1. (Newsmax)
Rebuilt water and sanitation systems help heal scars of conflict in Georgia Aug 4, 2009
Tue, 4 Aug 05:27:39 GMT. The views expressed are the author's alone. (AlertNet)
Locals rob Maharashtra wind energy plant of Rs260cr Aug 3, 2009
The incident was brought to light by the states own agency, the Maharashtra Economic Development Council (MEDC), in its resource mapping study, completed on March 2009, for districts with a low human development index. MEDC now wants the state to act urgently to save its image. (India Times, India)
Nissan unveils zero-emission hatchback "Leaf" Aug 2, 2009
Human development index ranking (2005). Related articles. (AlertNet)
Guinea-Bissau Holds Runoff Vote On President Jul 27, 2009
The violence and instability have taken their toll, leaving Guinea-Bissau ranked third from last on the United Nation's 2008 Human Development Index. Most of its people live without electricity or clean water and the average life expectancy is just 46 years. (CBS News -- World)
Guinea-Bissau holds presidential run-off Jul 26, 2009
5 million population is among the poorest in the world, being ranked the 175th out of 177 nations in the UN Development Program's Human Development Index. With a jagged Atlantic coastline, the country is being used by traffickers as a major hub for the flow of cocaine from Latin America to Europe. (Xinhuanet, China)
Africa: After the Speech [analysis] Jul 23, 2009
The UN's Human Development Index backs this up. In 2008, of 179 countries listed, Korea was ranked an impressive twenty-fifth while Kenya was 144. (allAfrica.com)
Reaction from aid experts Jul 11, 2009
Reuters AlertNet - INSTANT VIEW-G8 summit pledges $20 bln to boost food output. Sat, 04:46 11 Jul 2009 GMT. (AlertNet)
Indebted nations fightoff vulture funds Jul 8, 2009
The World Health Organization reports that as of December 2008, the DRC ranks 168th out of 177 nations on the UNDP Human Development Index scale. About 1. (Asia Times Online)
Blind Karen farmer harvests dignity as well as extra income Jul 3, 2009
Fri, 3 Jul 07:07:35 GMT. The views expressed are the author's alone. (AlertNet)
Haiti debt relief to free up $50 mln a year - IMF Jul 2, 2009
Thu, 2 Jul 08:09:19 GMT. (Recasts to add details from interview). (AlertNet)
FACTBOX-Unstable Guinea-Bissau holds election Jun 28, 2009
-- Guinea-Bissau is ranked 171 out of 179 nations in the U.N. Development Programme's Human Development Index. Life expectancy at birth is less than 46 years. (AlertNet)
Guinea-Bissau Holds Elections Sunday Jun 27, 2009
The nation sits at the bottom of most economic and health indices, ranking third from last on the 2008 Human Development Index. The majority of people live without electricity or clean running water, and there are few job opportunities for young people. (CBS News -- World)
'Boom and bust' of deforestation Jun 16, 2009
Ana Rodrigues and colleagues assessed the development status of people in 286 municipalities using the UN's Human Development Index (HDI), which combines measures of standard of living, literacy and life expectancy. Some of the municipalities were in areas of virgin forest. (BBC News -- Science)
Central African Republic: Under the Gun - Violence and Displacement May 29, 2009
With CAR ranked 171st out of the 177 countries listed in the UN's Human Development Index, everyday conditions in CAR are grim even at the best of times. There are just 330 doctors for a population of more than four million. (allAfrica.com)
China, Sierra Leone vow to further enhance friendly ties May 26, 2009
1 million and an area of some 71,740 square kilometers, the country is the lowest ranked country on the Human Development Index and seventh lowest on the Human Poverty Index, following years of civil wars. China forged diplomatic ties with Sierra Leone on July 29, 1971. (Xinhuanet, China)
HUMAN RIGHTS May 23, 2009
Reuters AlertNet - Sri Lanka seeks to deflect U.N. rights scrutiny. Sat, 06:25 23 May 2009 GMT. (AlertNet)
Chad: Paving the Way for Better Obstetric Care May 21, 2009
Chad is one of the most dangerous places in the world to give birth, with 1,100 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births, ranking 170th among 177 countries in the UN Human Development Index. As throughout sub-Saharan Africa, most of the deaths occur when a woman suffers complications such as haemorrhage or infection at childbirth and no medical facilities or personnel are accessible. (allAfrica.com)
Elephants suffering in Mali drought May 20, 2009
The U.N. Development Programme ranks Mali near the bottom of its Human Development Index. It cites a 56 percent poverty rate in the country, with nearly a third of the population unlikely to live past age 40, and an illiteracy rate of 77 percent. (CNN -- World)
Influx of last survivors of Sri Lankan conflict could overwhelm stretched aid agencies May 19, 2009
Tue, 07:31 19 May 2009 GMT. The views expressed are the author's alone. (AlertNet)
Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk Begins 500-mile Journey to Raise Awareness and Funds for Clean Water in Burkina Faso May 11, 2009
BARKA is a US and Burkina Faso-based NGO addressing the centrality of water's role in eradicating extreme poverty in Burkina Faso, West Africa, a country ranked 173rd out of 179 countries on the Human Development Index (UNDP 2008). "We went to the women out in the bush and small villages and asked them what their greatest need was. They all said water. We took our directive from those women. Women in Burkina walk for miles every day to get water. When a village has a well, women can sustain... (Yahoo News -- Press Releases)
'BOAT PEOPLE' May 7, 2009
Reuters AlertNet - Sri Lanka: "Boat people" recount horrors of no-fire zone. Thu, 7 May 07:17:54 GMT. (AlertNet)
Storm leaves 20 dead, displaces thousands - IRIN May 5, 2009
Reuters AlertNet - PHILIPPINES: Storm Dante leaves 20 dead, displaces thousands. Tue, 5 May 06:05:56 GMT. (AlertNet)
Southern Africa: Eight Countries Team Up to Fight Malaria May 1, 2009
Malarone, one of the more effective malaria medicines, costs up to $5 per daily dose, while according to the 2008 UNDP human development index, the average Namibian earns only about $250 a month. "Since an effective vaccine still seems something of the distant future, a combination of indoor residual spraying (IRS) with dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), handing out nets pre-treated with insecticides and making treatment universally accessible seems most effective," said Besta Tiruneh,... (allAfrica.com)
Swazi Culture Encourages HIV, Says Study Apr 17, 2009
In 2000 life expectancy was 61 years; now it is 32 years, according to the Human Development Index of the UN Development Programme. Male-dominated society. (allAfrica.com)
Ghana The Middle Age Toddler Apr 13, 2009
No wonder current estimates for life expectancy in Ghana has hovered around 59 (Source: Human Development Index 2007) in the past decade, in an era where that number is inching towards 80 years in Japan, United States and Western Europe ... Despite the not-so-inspiring record on human development index, I believe were better off for making the effort to run our own government, economy, education and healthcare system, etc. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Sri Lanka - Weaving wonders: Sustainable recovery from tsunami and conflict Apr 10, 2009
Fri, 02:47 10 Apr 2009 GMT. The views expressed are the author's alone. (AlertNet)
Gabon: Health Workers' Strike 'Has Cost Lives' Apr 9, 2009
Gabon ranks 119 of 177 countries on the UN Human Development Index, which measures indicators including income and access to education and health care. This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations. (allAfrica.com)
World Affairs: Apr 5, 2009
In the United Nations Development Programs annually tabulated Human Development Index, which uses health as well as economic data to measure a countrys living standards as they affect quality of life, Russia was number 73 out of 179. A country of virtually universal literacy and quite respectable general educational attainment, with a scientific cadre that mastered nuclear fission over half a century ago and launches orbital spacecraft and interplanetary probes today, finds itself... (Harper's Magazine)
LETTERS: NCT, April 5, 2009 Apr 5, 2009
" Many of the regular writers to the editor of this paper also haul out the term "socialist" as a term of total disapprobation.Yet I would be willing to bet that most of these disdainers of socialism have gone to public schools, and are going, or have parents or grandparents who collect Social Security, and enjoy the benefits of Medicare. It was back in the 19th century that people understood that the socialist institutions of public schools were much cheaper that penal institutions. Social... (North County Times)
Ghana: People Have a Message for G20 Apr 3, 2009
Ghana ranks 135 out of 177 countries in the UN Development Programme's human development index. Agriculture. (allAfrica.com)
China Tibetology Research Center published a comprehensive report on Tibet's economic and social development on Monday, in which it outlined the region's changes over the past 50 years. • Full Text: Report on Economic, Social Development of Tibet Mar 30, 2009
The studies of Tibet's human development index and related issues reveal that major indicators of the human development index, including population growth rate, GDP per capita, average life expectancy and average education level, of Tibetan residents, especially those of the Tibetan ethnic group, are experiencing revolutionary changes along with the rapid development of the local economy. Therefore, Tibet's development is characterized by improved quality of life and guaranteed rights and... (Xinhuanet, China)
Namibia launches operation to rescue marooned schoolchildren Mar 28, 2009
Reuters AlertNet - Southern Africa : The Zambezi shows its might. Sat, 05:24 28 Mar 2009 GMT. (AlertNet)
