Nepal secures 144th position in HDI

Kathmandu, March 22

Nepal has managed to show improvement of two notches in the ‘change in Human Development Index (HDI) rank’ between 2010 and 2015. The country has secured a spot among the nations with medium human development, coming in at 144th

position in the HDI 2015, same as HDI 2014.

The Human Development Report 2016, titled ‘Human Development for Everyone’, released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has, however highlighted how ethnic minority status is associated with lower capabilities and opportunities in the country. “The highest inequalities are in education, and this may have pronounced long-term effects on capabilities later in life,” the report says.

The report has said that although average human development improved significantly across all regions from 1990 to 2015, one in three people worldwide continue to live in low levels of human development, as measured by the HDI.

“Leaving no one behind needs to become the way we operate as a global community. In order to overcome the barriers that hamper both human development and progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, inclusiveness must guide policy choices,” Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven has been quoted as saying during the launch of report in Stockholm on Tuesday, as per a media release.

The report has called for far greater attention to empowering the most marginalised in society, and recognised the importance of giving them greater voice in decision-making processes.

The report has also called for a more refined analysis to inform actions, including making a shift toward assessing progress in such areas as participation and autonomy. Key data, disaggregated for characteristics such as place, gender, socioeconomic status and ethnicity, is vital to know who is being left behind, as per UNDP report.