Human Development Report: Bangladesh performance
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Anu Mahmud
Good news has always a cheery ring to it. There are all the moments when the state of the country's politics has a disquieting affect on us all and for the right reasons. Even so, for all the confrontational nature of politics, for all our feelings that we may have been caught up in a morass, we do get to be encouraged when we are given a glimpse of the inner strength of our people, which peoples of a global nature sometimes hold up for us.
The UNDP' s Human Development Report 2010 is one of those instances that should be acting as a spur to our goals, to a fulfillment of them, for the future. In a wide ranging survey of countries, the report places Bangladesh in third position among 95 countries in terms of an improvement in the quality of life. For good measure, the report shows that the Human Development Index in Bangladesh has gone up by as much as 81 in how we can handle conditions per cent since 1981. Of course, one does not really require a report to know of the various areas where the country has made advances.
In terms of the economy, such fields as garments have performed remarkably. In similar manner, the remittances that have made their way into the country from abroad, owing to the presence of a large body of Bangladeshi manpower in various countries, have brought about qualitative changes in life, particularly at the rural levels.
The UNDP's Human Development Report 2010 makes note of a remarkable improvement in life expectancy in Bangladesh. In the last forty years, life expectancy has surged by 23 years, which is again a good indication of the possibilities before the country. The need now is focus. We cannot afford to lose more time in tying to catch up with the rest of the world. Let us be under no illusion that as a nation we have emerged from the trap of poverty. We have not and all signs indicate that poverty alleviation will require a maximum of effort in the years ahead given that the projections about population increase are rather uncomfortable. Unless we are able to prioritise policies and policy implementation effectively at present and in the immediate future, we will be facing a population figure of 220 million by the year 2050.The negative impact of such a phenomenal rise on development can only be imagined. Which is why the UNDP report should act as a guideline, broadly speaking, in how we can handle conditions from here on.
Given all the difficulties, political and social and those caused by nature, we are usually confronted with, our position in the report can be looked at as a mark of the resilience that can help us turn conditions around. Overall, our rank is 129 among a total of 169 nations. Of course, there is no reason to feel complacent about such a placing. With all the necessary steps that need to attend must be taken in their varied region of national development, we can surely look forward to a better position on the global development index in the future. The prerequisite here is a focused assessment of the ground realities and a subsequent carving out of a path toward making things better than what we have achieved so far.
Bangladesh's index has increased 81 per cent between 1980 and 2010 or 2 per cent a year. This is certainly a cause for elation. It is specially to be celebrated if we have left behind our former colonizer and genocide perpetrator Pakistan on many counts in the social sector, which is indeed the case as far as literacy and women's empowerment are concerned. On deeper analysis, however, the picture would appear less flattering. With this improvement Bangladesh is placed 129th among 169 countries round the world.
In other words, Bangladesh's ranking is among the 40 lowest countries in the world. Considering that the picture cannot be changed overnight, we can draw comfort from the fact we are inching towards the goal, or from the Chinese proverb that the journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. The overall performance, says the report still remains below the regional average.
This relative gain has mainly been made possible due to rise in life expectancy. Although our health service is inadequate, inefficient and mainly city based, people are living longer than before. And thanks to the success of the EPI camping, child survival rate has vastly improved. Although the NGOs have played a mixed role and no uncritical accolades are due to them, in the social sector some of them may be said to have performed admirably. Instead of engaging in trading and usury the NGOs should be encouraged to work in areas where they can truly contribute to social uplift.
Growth rate does not give the full picture of a country's development in the way its HDI score can. In India where the government was parading its 8 per cent growth rate, one third of its population remained trapped below the poverty line, child health and nutrition was in a pitiable state and farmers were committing suicide due to indebtedness. As HDI gives a more real picture, it is worthwhile to try to raise it.
Good news has always a cheery ring to it. There are all the moments when the state of the country's politics has a disquieting affect on us all and for the right reasons. Even so, for all the confrontational nature of politics, for all our feelings that we may have been caught up in a morass, we do get to be encouraged when we are given a glimpse of the inner strength of our people, which peoples of a global nature sometimes hold up for us.
The UNDP' s Human Development Report 2010 is one of those instances that should be acting as a spur to our goals, to a fulfillment of them, for the future. In a wide ranging survey of countries, the report places Bangladesh in third position among 95 countries in terms of an improvement in the quality of life. For good measure, the report shows that the Human Development Index in Bangladesh has gone up by as much as 81 in how we can handle conditions per cent since 1981. Of course, one does not really require a report to know of the various areas where the country has made advances.
In terms of the economy, such fields as garments have performed remarkably. In similar manner, the remittances that have made their way into the country from abroad, owing to the presence of a large body of Bangladeshi manpower in various countries, have brought about qualitative changes in life, particularly at the rural levels.
The UNDP's Human Development Report 2010 makes note of a remarkable improvement in life expectancy in Bangladesh. In the last forty years, life expectancy has surged by 23 years, which is again a good indication of the possibilities before the country. The need now is focus. We cannot afford to lose more time in tying to catch up with the rest of the world. Let us be under no illusion that as a nation we have emerged from the trap of poverty. We have not and all signs indicate that poverty alleviation will require a maximum of effort in the years ahead given that the projections about population increase are rather uncomfortable. Unless we are able to prioritise policies and policy implementation effectively at present and in the immediate future, we will be facing a population figure of 220 million by the year 2050.The negative impact of such a phenomenal rise on development can only be imagined. Which is why the UNDP report should act as a guideline, broadly speaking, in how we can handle conditions from here on.
Given all the difficulties, political and social and those caused by nature, we are usually confronted with, our position in the report can be looked at as a mark of the resilience that can help us turn conditions around. Overall, our rank is 129 among a total of 169 nations. Of course, there is no reason to feel complacent about such a placing. With all the necessary steps that need to attend must be taken in their varied region of national development, we can surely look forward to a better position on the global development index in the future. The prerequisite here is a focused assessment of the ground realities and a subsequent carving out of a path toward making things better than what we have achieved so far.
Bangladesh's index has increased 81 per cent between 1980 and 2010 or 2 per cent a year. This is certainly a cause for elation. It is specially to be celebrated if we have left behind our former colonizer and genocide perpetrator Pakistan on many counts in the social sector, which is indeed the case as far as literacy and women's empowerment are concerned. On deeper analysis, however, the picture would appear less flattering. With this improvement Bangladesh is placed 129th among 169 countries round the world.
In other words, Bangladesh's ranking is among the 40 lowest countries in the world. Considering that the picture cannot be changed overnight, we can draw comfort from the fact we are inching towards the goal, or from the Chinese proverb that the journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. The overall performance, says the report still remains below the regional average.
This relative gain has mainly been made possible due to rise in life expectancy. Although our health service is inadequate, inefficient and mainly city based, people are living longer than before. And thanks to the success of the EPI camping, child survival rate has vastly improved. Although the NGOs have played a mixed role and no uncritical accolades are due to them, in the social sector some of them may be said to have performed admirably. Instead of engaging in trading and usury the NGOs should be encouraged to work in areas where they can truly contribute to social uplift.
Growth rate does not give the full picture of a country's development in the way its HDI score can. In India where the government was parading its 8 per cent growth rate, one third of its population remained trapped below the poverty line, child health and nutrition was in a pitiable state and farmers were committing suicide due to indebtedness. As HDI gives a more real picture, it is worthwhile to try to raise it.