MODULE 6 Social and Economic Development

Content to be delivered;

1. Human Development Index

2. Gender Inequality

3. International Development

Intended Learning Outcomes

The course Introduction to Historiography is very useful and invaluable to all students of history. Its
objectives are:

1. Define and explain Human Development Index and its impact;

2. Identify and discuss Gender inequality; and

3. Analyze importance and effects of International Development.

Uncover Your Prior Knowledge!

Direction:
Let’s Discover and Learn

Human Development Index (HDI)

The HDI was created to emphasize that people and their capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for
assessing the development of a country, not economic growth alone. The HDI can also be used to
question national policy choices, asking how two countries with the same level of GNI per capita can end
up with different human development outcomes. These contrasts can stimulate debate about
government policy priorities.

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions
of human development: a long and healthy life, being knowledgeable and have a decent standard of
living. The HDI is the geometric mean of normalized indices for each of the three dimensions.
The health dimension is assessed by life expectancy at birth, the education dimension is measured by
mean of years of schooling for adults aged 25 years and more and expected years of schooling for
children of school entering age. The standard of living dimension is measured by gross national income
per capita. The HDI uses the logarithm of income, to reflect the diminishing importance of income with
increasing GNI. The scores for the three HDI dimension indices are then aggregated into a composite
index using geometric mean.
The HDI simplifies and captures only part of what human development entails. It does not reflect on
inequalities, poverty, human security, empowerment, etc. The HDRO offers the other composite indices
as broader proxy on some of the key issues of human development, inequality, gender disparity and
poverty.
A fuller picture of a country's level of human development requires analysis of other indicators and
information presented in the statistical annex of the report.

(Retrieved from http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/human-development-index-hdi)

Understanding the Human Development Index (HDI)

The Human Development Index (HDI) was established to place emphasis on individuals, more precisely
on their opportunities to realize satisfying work and lives. Evaluating a country's potential for individual
human development provides a supplementary metric for evaluating a country's level of development
besides considering standard economic growth statistics, such as gross domestic product (GDP).
This index can also be used to examine the various policy choices of nations; if, for example, two
countries have approximately the same gross national income (GNI) per capita, then it can help to
evaluate why they produce widely disparate human development outcomes. Proponents of the HDI
hope it can be used to stimulate such productive public policy debate.

How Is the HDI Measured?

The HDI is a summary measurement of basic achievement levels in human development. The computed
HDI of a country is an average of indexes of each of the life aspects that are examined: knowledge and
understanding, a long and healthy life, and an acceptable standard of living. Each of the four
components is normalized to scale between 0 and 1, and then the geometric mean of the three
components is calculated.2

The health aspect of the HDI is measured by the life expectancy, as calculated at the time of birth, in
each country, normalized so that this component is equal to 0 when life expectancy is 20 and equal to 1
when life expectancy is 85.2

Education is measured on two levels: the mean years of schooling for residents of a country and the
expected years of schooling that a child has at the average age for starting school. These are each
separately normalized so that 15 mean years of schooling equals one, and 18 years of expected
schooling equals one, and a simple mean of the two is calculated. 2

The metric chosen to represent the standard of living is GNI per capita based on purchasing power parity
(PPP), a common metric used to reflect average income. The standard of living is normalized so that it is
equal to 1 when GNI per capita is $75,000 and equal to 0 when GNI per capita is $100. The final Human
Development Index score for each country is calculated as a geometric mean of the three components
by taking the cube root of the product of the normalized component scores.

Limitations of the Index

The HDI is a simplification and an admittedly limited evaluation of human development. The HDI does
not specifically reflect quality-of-life factors, such as empowerment movements or overall feelings of
security. In recognition of these facts, the Human Development Report Office (HDRO) provides
additional composite indices to evaluate other life aspects, including inequality issues such as gender
disparity or racial inequality. Examination and evaluation of a country's HDI are best done in concert
with examining these and other factors, such as the country's rate of economic growth, expansion of
employment opportunities, and the success of initiatives undertaken to improve the overall quality of
life within a country.

Several economists have raised the criticism of the HDI that it is essentially redundant as a result of the
high correlations between the HDI, its components, and simpler measures of income per capita. GNI per
capita (or even GDP per capita) correlates very highly with both the overall HDI and the other two
components in both values and rankings. Given these strong and consistent correlations, it would be
simpler and clearer to just compare per capita GNI across countries than to spend time and resources
collecting data for the additional components that provide little or no additional information to the
overall index.

Indeed, a fundamental principle of the composite index design is to not include multiple additional
components that are strongly correlated in a way that suggests that they might reflect the same
underlying phenomenon. This is to prevent inefficient double counting and to avoid introducing
additional sources of potential errors in the data.
In the case of HDI, the inclusion of the components is problematic because it is easily plausible that
higher average incomes directly lead to both more investment in formal education and better health
and longevity, and definitions and measurement of years of schooling and life expectancy can vary
widely from country to country.

(Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/human-development-index-hdi.asp)

Gender Inequality

Girls and boys see gender inequality in their homes and communities every day – in textbooks, in the

media and among the adults who care for them.

Parents may assume unequal responsibility for household work, with mothers bearing the brunt of

caregiving and chores. The majority of low-skilled and underpaid community health workers who attend

to children are also women, with limited opportunity for professional growth.

And in schools, many girls receive less support than boys to pursue the studies they choose. This

happens for a variety of reasons: The safety, hygiene and sanitation needs of girls may be neglected,

barring them from regularly attending class. Discriminatory teaching practices and education materials

also produce gender gaps in learning and skills development. As a result, nearly 1 in 4 girls between the

ages of 15 and 19 are neither employed nor in education or training – compared to 1 in 10 boys.

Worldwide, nearly 1 in 4 girls between the ages of 15 and 19 are neither employed nor in education or
training – compared to 1 in 10 boys.

Yet, in early childhood, gender disparities start out small. Girls have higher survival rates at birth, are

more likely to be developmentally on track, and are just as likely to participate in preschool. Among

those who reach secondary school, girls tend to outperform boys in reading across every country where

data are available.

But the onset of adolescence can bring significant barriers to girls’ well-being. Gender norms and

discrimination heighten their risk of unwanted pregnancy, HIV and AIDS, and malnutrition. Especially in

emergency settings and in places where menstruation remains taboo, girls are cut off from the

information and supplies they need to stay healthy and safe.

In its most insidious form, gender inequality turns violent. Some 1 in 20 girls between the ages of 15 and

19 – around 13 million – have experienced forced sex. In times of both peace and conflict, adolescent

girls face the highest risk of gender-based violence. Hundreds of millions of girls worldwide are still

subjected to child marriage and female genital mutilation – even though both have been internationally

recognized as human rights violations. And violence can occur at birth, like in places where female

infanticide is known to persist.

Some 1 in 20 girls between the ages of 15 and 19 – around 13 million globally – have experienced forced
sex in their lifetimes.

Harmful gender norms are perpetuated at the highest levels. In some countries, they become
entrenched in laws and policies that fail to uphold – or that even violate – girls’ rights, like laws that
restrict women from inheriting property. Boys also suffer from gender norms: Social conceptions of
masculinity can fuel child labour, gang violence, disengagement from school, and recruitment into
armed groups.

What progress has been made for girls and young women?

Despite major hurdles that still deny them equal rights, girls refuse to limit their ambitions. Since the

signing of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995 – the most comprehensive policy

agenda for gender equality – the world has seen uneven progress.

More and more girls are attending and completing school, and fewer are getting married or becoming

mothers while still children themselves. But discrimination and limiting stereotypes remain

rife. Technological change and humanitarian emergencies are also confronting girls with new challenges,

while old ones – violence, institutionalized biases, poor learning and life opportunities – persist.

That’s why girls from all walks of life are boldly raising their voices against inequality. Girl-led

movements are stopping child marriage and female genital mutilation, demanding action on climate

change, and trail-blazing in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) – asserting

their power as global change-makers.

What is UNICEF doing to promote gender equality?

Reducing inequality strengthens economies and builds stable, resilient societies that give all individuals –

including boys and men – the opportunity to fulfil their potential.

UNICEF builds partnerships across the global community to accelerate gender equality. In all areas of

our work, we integrate strategies that address gender-specific discrimination and disadvantages.

This means partnering with national health sectors to expand quality maternal care and support the

professionalization of the mostly female front-line community health workforce. It means promoting the

role of women in the design and delivery of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) ecosystems. And it

means working with the education sector to ensure girls and boys thrive in their learning and find

pathways to meaningful employment.

For adolescent girls especially, UNICEF invests in skills building to further their economic empowerment

– as entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders. We focus on providing learning environments at a time and

place that suit girls’ individual circumstances. We also work on assistive technologies for girls with

disabilities, and on the expansion of digital platforms, vocational training and apprenticeships.

Supporting girls’ pathway from education to employment requires more than learning opportunities. It

requires keeping girls safe from all forms of violence, in and out of school.

Our targeted initiatives to prevent and respond to gender-based violence help end child marriage,

eliminate female genital mutilation, provide safe spaces, support menstrual health management, deliver

HIV and AIDS care, meet psychosocial needs and more. We invest in innovative models that protect

even the hardest-to-reach girls – like virtual safe spaces and apps that allow them to report violence and

connect to local resources for support.

To guide investment and programming decisions at the national and global levels, we collect, quantify

and share data critical for understanding ongoing and emerging challenges and solutions. What’s more,

we tap into the power of youth to shape solutions for their own generation.

(Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/gender-equality)

International Development

International development is focused on engaging with economically disadvantaged regions to

empower people to improve their well-being and address the causes and effects of poverty.
The concept of international development is underlined by the idea that societies and countries have
differing levels of 'development' and can be categorised as developed, developing or least developed.

More than 700 million people, or 10% of the world population, still live in extreme poverty so the scale
of the challenge is immense. But there is a plan and civil society organisations, the private sector, and
governments are all involved.

How is the world approaching sustainable development?

In 2015 all United Nations Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. At
the core of this agenda are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are a call for action by
all countries.

They SDGs recognise that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and
education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working
to preserve our oceans and forests.

The 17 SDGs are:

GOAL 1: No Poverty

GOAL 2: Zero Hunger

GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-being

GOAL 4: Quality Education

GOAL 5: Gender Equality

GOAL 6: Clean Water and Sanitation

GOAL 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

GOAL 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality

GOAL 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

GOAL 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

GOAL 13: Climate Action

GOAL 14: Life Below Water

GOAL 15: Life on Land

GOAL 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions

GOAL 17: Partnerships to achieve the Goal

Each year a Sustainable Development Goals Report is published by the UN Secretary-General and
provides an overview of the world’s implementation efforts to date, with the latest UN data highlighting
areas of progress and areas where more action needs to be taken to ensure no one is left behind.

In 2019 the report showed that says that, despite headway on some SDGs, hunger is going in the wrong
direction. 821 million people were undernourished in 2017, up from 784 million in 2015.

(Retrieved from https://www.concern.org.uk/what-is-international-development)

Around the world, amazing progress in development is being made. More than 1 billion people have
been lifted out of extreme poverty since 1990, with major gains made in health, education, and other
areas that contribute to human well-being. While the world still faces considerable challenges,
including inequality, conflict, and climate change, quality of life around the world is improving.

24.3%

In 1990, about 35% of the global population lived in poverty; by 2013 that number was cut by more

than half and had decreased to 10.7%. From 1990 to 2017, 1.1 billion people were lifted out of

extreme poverty.

50%

From 1990 to 2016, there was a 50% drop in the proportion of undernourished people in

developing countries, from 23.3% to 12.9%.

5.2 BILLION

In 2015, 5.2 billion people used safe drinking-water services. Some 2.6 billion people have gained

access to improved drinking water since 1990.

How does the world work together to make development progress?

The U.S. has a long bipartisan history of working with and within the international system to advance

evidence-based development priorities and solutions. American leadership and engagement in

multilateral organizations and other international organizations is crucial and helps

drive development successes.

Since 2015, international development has been shaped by the Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs), a 15-year agenda divided into 17 different goals that provide a shared blueprint for tackling

development challenges and advancing human rights, has driven international development. The U.S.

was a key driver in the creation of the SDGs, which were developed and adopted by all 193 member

countries in the United Nations (UN). The SDGs build on the eight Millennium Development Goals

(MDGs) established in 2000 to “combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental

degradation, and discrimination against women.”

The SDGs currently guide international development investments and track progress and effectiveness

through an intersectional set of indicators. Around the world, country governments, NGOs, civil

society organizations, and donors are working in coordination to meet the SDGs by 2030.

Sustainable Development Goals

The UN characterizes the SDGs in five key categories:

 People: We are determined to end poverty and hunger, in all their forms and dimensions, and

to ensure that all human beings can fulfill their potential with dignity, equality, and a healthy

environment.

 Planet: We are determined to protect the planet from degradation, including through

sustainable consumption and production, sustainable management of its natural resources,

and urgent action on climate change, so that it can support the needs of present and future

generations.

 Prosperity: We are determined to ensure that all human beings can enjoy prosperous and

fulfilling lives and that economic, social, and technological progress occurs in harmony with

nature.

 Peace: We are determined to foster peaceful, just, and inclusive societies that are free from

fear and violence. There can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace

without sustainable development.

 Partnership: We are determined to mobilize the means required to implement this agenda

through a revitalized Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, based on a spirit of

strengthened global solidarity, focused in particular on the needs of the poorest and most
 vulnerable and with the participation of all countries, all stakeholders, and all people. The

interlinkages and integrated nature of the sustainable development goals are of crucial

importance in ensuring that the purpose of the new agenda is realized.

MAKING PROGRESS

99%

Polio cases have decreased worldwide by over 99% since 1988, with only 22 reported cases in
2017. PEPFAR is saving 14 million people with antiretroviral treatment (ART) as of March 2018,
and nearly 2.2 million babies that would otherwise have been infected were born HIV-free.

+8%

Enrollment in primary education in developing regions reached 91% in 2015, up from 83% in 2000.

60%

Almost 40% of the world’s population lived in a free country in 2017. This, however, leaves
approximately 60% of the global population living in countries that are partly or not free.

What work remains to be done?

Despite encouraging progress, many global challenges have been improved by development efforts,

the need for assistance continues.

 Millions of children still die from preventable and treatable diseases. 5.6 million children still

die each year of preventable and treatable diseases. Up to 45% of deaths occurring among

children under 5 are due in part to malnutrition.

 Conflict and environmental shocks present new challenges for communities. The number of

extreme climate-related disasters, including extreme heat, droughts, floods and storms, has

doubled since the early 1990s. These harm agricultural productivity contributing to shortfalls

in food availability, leading to food price hikes and income losses.

  Economic growth is unequal. Half of all people living on less than $1.90 a day live in sub-

Saharan Africa. If women farmers had the same access to financial resources as men, the

number of hungry in the world could be reduced by up to 150 million.

 The number of hungry people is rising for the first time in a decade. In 2017, 821 million

people were estimated to suffer from hunger – up from 777 million in 2015.

 Rapid population growth threatens past progress. The world’s population continues to grow;

the population of Africa is on track to doubling by 2050, compounding strains on health care,

labor markets, and agriculture, among others.

 Millions continue to lack access to lifesaving health care. Over 14 million people living with

HIV still do not have access to antiretroviral therapy, and 1.8 million people became newly

infected with HIV in 2017. Less than half of 2.1 million children living with HIV have access

to lifesaving antiretroviral drugs.

 Rural and urban communities face different access challenges to reach development

goals. Four billion people have no access to electricity worldwide – most of whom live in

rural areas of the developing world. The overall growth of the world’s population could add

another 2.5 billion people to urban areas by 2050, with close to 90% of this increase taking

place in Asia and Africa

(Retrieved from https://www.interaction.org/aid-delivers/foreign-assistance-overview/international-

development-101/)

Engaging Activity

Activity 1
Let’s Try It!

References

https://www.britannica.com/topic/civil-war/Political-causes-of-civil-war

https://www.britannica.com/topic/international-relations/Structures-institutions-and-levels-of-
analysis#ref247578

https://www.coe.int/en/web/compass/war-and-terrorism

https://www.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=b6fd073621f5462e86b953142ed809e6