La Norvegia ha i più alti standard di vita di tutti gli Stati membri delle Nazioni Unite.

<!– –>  1° posto: Norvegia

Secondo lo “Human Development Report”  delle Nazioni Unite, la Norvegia è, fra i paesi più sviluppati, quello in cui si vive meglio.

 

2° posto: Australia
Al secondo posto, l’Australia. I criteri determinanti non sono state belle spiagge e sole, ma tre elementi fondamentali: una vita lunga e sana, l’accesso alla conoscenza e uno standard di vita molto buono.

3° classificato: Islanda
L’ Isola del Nord Atlantico raggiunge il terzo posto per gli elevati standard di vita. C’è, però, da dire, che i dati per l’indagine risalgono al 2007, per cui la relazione non riflette ancora gli effetti della crisi economica globale, che hanno portato l’Islanda sull’orlo della bancarotta nazionale.

Posizione 6: Paesi Bassi
I Paesi Bassi hanno scambiato il settimo posto con la Svezia e ora si trovano al sesto posto.

8° posizione: Francia
I francesi hanno fatto strada nella top ten, dopo aver precedentemente occupato l’undicesimo posto.

 

10° posto: Giappone
Il Giappone conserva tenacemente il suo decimo posto per una qualità di vita molto alta. Grazie al sistema sanitario, e probabilmente anche grazie al cibo, l’aspettativa di vita si aggira intorno a una media di 82,7 anni.

Posizione 13: Stati Uniti
Per lo Human Development Report, gli Stati Uniti devono ritenersi soddisfatti di occupare la posizione numero 13. Per questa indagine sono stati utilizzati, tra l’altro, i dati sul reddito, istruzione e aspettative di vita.

14° posto: Austria
Un buon risultato quello raggiunto dall’Austria, salita di due posti, rispetto al passato, per il miglioramento dello stato delle Alpi.

15° posto: Spagna
Con questa posizione, invariata, la Spagna è ancora migliore di altri Paesi del sud Europa.

18° posto: Italia
L’Italia è solo diciottesima in classifica, ma è migliorata di una posizione.

 

Posto 21: Regno Unito
Gli inglesi non sono riusciti a migliorare la loro posizione, ma almeno non è peggiorata.

22° posto: Germania
Non è molto contenta la Germania di essere così bassa in classifica. Tuttavia, può consolarsi con il fatto che il suo standard di sviluppo è considerato “molto elevato”.

Posizione 92: Cina
Su un totale di 182 Paesi, la Cina è novantaduesima, circa a metà. La Repubblica Popolare ha così rafforzato la sua posizione di sette posti.

182° posto: Nigeria
I risultati peggiori sono stati riscontrati in Sierra Leone, Afghanistan e Nigeria.
Il paese più povero, secondo la relazione, è la Repubblica Democratica del Congo, con un reddito medio annuo pro capite di 204 euro. La metà della popolazione dei 24 paesi più poveri non sa leggere. In Afghanistan, a causa delle devastazioni della guerra, l’aspettativa di vita è di 43,6 anni.

       On Monday, the United Nations (UN) released their Human Development Report (HDR) for 2009, ranking 182 countries into their respective places based on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Human Development Index (HDI) of these countries.  GDP is defined as the total market value of all final goods and services produced in a country in a given year, equal to total consumer, investment and government spending, plus the value of exports, minus the value of imports.  In layman’s terms, it measures a country’s economic performance on a yearly basis.  Since its inception in 1990, the HDR has reached beyond simply looking at a country’s GDP and has created the HDI which measures three dimensions of human development:  life expectancy, literacy and gross enrolment in education, and having a decent standard of living.  While it is easy to argue that these measurements are not an effective way to gauge the success or failure of a country in a numbered ranking system (what of gender, social services, child welfare), for the purpose of this article, let’s just look at the gross difference between those living at the top (Norway, Australia, Iceland and Canada ranked 1 through 4) and the bottom (Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Niger in spots 180-182).

            While it should be noted that this Report was created using 2007 statistics before the current economic crisis, it is still very apparent that there are stark disparities between those countries at the top of the list, and those at the bottom.  For instance, the average life expectancy in Niger is 50 years, which is a full 30 years less than the life expectancy in 4^th place Canada.  For every dollar earned in Niger, eighty-five (85) dollars is earned in 1^st place Norway.  It is believed that more than half the population in the lowest ranking 24 countries are illiterate.  These kinds of statistics put on paper what most students of global studies already know – we do not live in a world of equality and justice.  These yearly reports simply reiterate that while the privileged can expect to enjoy a long life with education and excellent standards of living the poor seem to be destined to remain in a position of poverty, illiteracy and shortened life expectancies.  I’ve provided a very brief background on the UNHDR for you, and I encourage you to click the link that follows and read a bit more on your own…the results will hopefully shock you back into reality – I know it always does for me.

Click here to view the full Human Development Report 2009.

hw

UNDP – Asia Pacific Human Development Media Fellowship

Context and Objective

The human development approach puts people at the centre of development. It recognizes the importance of economic concerns but goes beyond them to raise issues of enlarging human capabilities and expanding people’s choices. The objective of the Media Fellowship is to contribute to building capacity in the Asia Pacific and support policy through advocacy and dissemination of research that bring people to the centre of development debates. The Fellowship encourages media professionals from Asia Pacific developing countries to undertake media advocacy on issues of concern in the region from a human development perspective on a new theme each year.

Theme – Gender: Overcoming Political, Legal and Economic Inequality

Gender is a social construct and is experienced differently in different cultures, societies and contexts. The power imbalance that defines gender relations influences access to and control over resources, their visibility and participation in social and political affairs, and their ability to realize their fundamental rights. Therefore, the struggle for greater gender equality involves addressing unequal power and unequal voice so all people can exercise choices that lead them to a fulfilled life.

Key triggers: Three key triggers than can contribute to transformation are political, legal and economic equity, as they are fundamental in catalysing transformation in gender relations in the personal and public spheres while also having a clear potential for policy. Gender identities are in fact shaped by, and in turn can shape, political, economic, social, religious and cultural factors, and through unequal power relations, can translate into marginalization, oppression, poverty and even violence. Gender identities further define and differentiate the roles, rights, responsibilities and obligations of women and men; they draw attention to a range of biases – based on biology and social norms that define expected behaviours for women and men. Although the specific nature of social norms and values vary across space and time, they tend to favour males over females, heterosexuals over sexual minorities, in terms of access to capabilities, resources, opportunities, choices and rights that are important for the enjoyment of social, cultural, economic and political freedoms. Issues of gender based violence, culture and identities (masculinity and femininity) cut across all sub-themes.

Role of men and boys: Although gender work is largely focused on women, the role of men and the deconstruction of different forms of masculinity, fatherhood and sexuality are fundamental to an understanding of gender inequality, gender rights and asymmetric power among gender groups. The negative aspects of partially informed views about gender is now being seen in terms of ‘male backlash’ against women-dominated development projects, pointing to the need to address masculinity and the role of men and boys.

Changing mindsets – media, technology, education (universal and content):Governments and all relevant actors, including NGOs, academia, parliamentarians, local authorities, the business community, civil society, international organisations and the private sector can be instrumental in changing national and local priorities to focus on gender equality and women’s empowerment. Political will paves the way for a change process. The commitment in respect to gender issues is expressed, for example, in legislation as well as in the programmes, policies, and plans of governments. These can target mindsets for example through gender review of textbooks and utilization of ICT tools which level the playing field among genders. Cooperation between civil society organizations and the government can contribute to the gradual change of the stereotypical perceptions on gender in culture and practices prevailing in society which limits individual and group choices and freedoms in life.

What are the factors beyond the persistence of gender inequalities in Asia Pacific? What steps can reduce gender-based inequalities in the region? What challenges should be tackled in order to create and sustain an enabling environment? What examples exist of changes in government policies which, together with alliances developed with the civil society, have translated in promoting gender equality in practice? Has political will not only introduced the gender equality dimension, acknowledging its centrality, but also taken further commitments by mainstreaming gender in various dimensions of planning? These are some of the questions that could be addressed.

The Fellowship

The award will be based on a proposal, including a draft budget. Proposals can cover different media outputs, e.g. radio programmes, short films, public service announcements, print media articles, cartoons, photo essays, etc. The Fellows should be willing to present their work at workshops, seminars and other events as may be arranged by UNDP from time to time (travel-related costs will be covered separately). The final media product will be shared with UNDP and acknowledge UNDP’s support as follows: “This work was supported by the United Nations Development Programme under an UNDP Asia Pacific Human Development Media Fellowship. The content, information, analysis and policy recommendations of this work represent the independent efforts, perspective and views of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations Development Programme, its Executive Board or its Member States’.

Eligibility

* Be a citizen of a developing country in the Asia Pacific region (1. Afghanistan,2. Bangladesh,3. Bhutan,4. Cambodia,5. China,6. Cook Islands,7. Democratic People’s,Republic of Korea,8. Federated States of Micronesia,9. Fiji,10. India,11. Indonesia,12. Iran, Islamic Republic of 13. Kiribati,14. Lao People’s Democratic Republic,15. Malaysia,16. Maldives,17. Marshall Islands,18. Mongolia,19. Myanmar,20. Nauru,21. Nepal,22. Niue,23. Pakistan,24. Palau,25. Papua New Guinea,26. The Philippines,27. Republic of Korea,28. Samoa,29. Solomon Islands,30. Sri Lanka,31. Thailand,32. Timor-Leste,33. Tokelau,34. Tonga,35. Tuvalu,36. Vanuatu,37. Viet Nam)

* A mid-career accredited media professional

* Around five years of relevant professional experience

* Completed application with enclosures (proposal, budget, time frame, CV, supporting material, if any, in English); supporting material in a language other than English must be accompanied by an English translation

* UN staff members are not eligible to apply

Application Process

All candidates must complete a formal application in English or with an English translation, including:

* Summary statement of the objectives of the proposal

* Project proposal, including a draft budget, not exceeding 2,000 words.

* The  project timeframe should not exceed 12 months

* Statement of professional objectives (please indicate how selection as a UNDP Media Fellow will contribute to your short and long term career objectives)

* Curriculum vitae

* Letter of reference from two professionals in your media who can comment on the applicant’s past work and the potential of the proposed work to contribute meaningfully to its chosen field

Incomplete applications or those received after the due date, will not be processed.

Selection Criteria

* Demonstrate exceptional creativity and innovation

* Contribute to value-addition or innovation in communicating research

* Provide evidence for placement of final product in established media; preference will be given to strategic or wide reach

* Complete work by third quarter of 2010 or earlier

Selection Procedure

Shortlisted candidates will be required to participate in an interview, conducted by an independent panel, which will comprehensively asses the proposal. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and subsequently informed about the results of the interview.

Deadline

Applications should be submitted by 1st September.

Contact Information

Applications or any queries should be sent to hdfellowships.rcc@undp.org

Alternatively, you could send them to:

UNDP Asia Pacific Human Development Media Fellowship

Human Development Report Unit

UNDP Regional Centre for Asia Pacific,

Colombo Office 23 Independence Avenue

Colombo 7

Sri Lanka

Annex I

A selected list of reading on human development/gender is the following:

* What is Human Development?

* Human Development Reports (Especially chapter 1 of HDR 1990)

* Human development training

* Background papers for global HDRs

* The Millennium Development Goals

* Risk, vulnerability and human development

* Human development report 1995 – Gender and human development

* Millennium Development Goals – National reports a look through a gender lens

* Measuring gender inequality and its impact on human development: The debate about the GDI and GEM

* For more on Human Development, please visit the website of the UNDP Regional Centre in Colombo at http://www.undprcc.lk/ under “Publications” Moreinfo: http://www2.undprcc.lk/about_us/fellowship.php

<!– @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } –>

Pada bulan Mei 2004 (Kompas, 8 Juni 2004), Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa (PBB) dan Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Nasional (Bappenas) melaunching Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) untuk Indonesia. MDGs adalah sasaran pembangunan jangka panjang, 1990- 2015 yang disepakati PBB dan 189 negara anggota PBB sebagaimana tertuang dalam Deklarasi Milenium September 2002 di mana Indonesia ikut menandatanganinya. MDGs merupakan sebuah pedoman dengan delapan target utama: penurunan angka kemiskinan; jangkauan layanan pendidikan dasar, pengarusutamaan jender dan pemberdayaan perempuan; penurunan angka kematian anak balita; peningkatan kesehatan ibu; pemberantasan HIV/AIDS, malaria, dan penyakit lainnya; penanganan lingkungan yang berkelanjutan; dan kemitraan global untuk pembangunan. Bila HDI (human life index) menggambarkan perkembangan kemajuan suatu bangsa dan dikeluarkan oleh PBB setiap tahun melalui Human Development Report, tetapi MDGs adalah pedoman sasaran.

Sebagai sebuah pedoman, MDGs sesungguhnya sangat berhubungan dengan pemenuhan hak dasar warga negara (right based approach) yang dapat dilihat berdasar indikator MDGs yang didasarkan pada Human Development Index (HDI) yang mencerminkan sejauh mana negara mampu memenuhi hak-hak dasar warga negara.

Terkait dengan pendidikan, tujuan kedua MDGs mentargetkan sampai dengan 2015, semua anak (Education For All, EFA), dimanapun, laki-laki dan perempuan, dapat menyelesaikan pendidikan dasar (primary schooling). Empat indikator yang digunakan yaitu angka melek huruf (literacy rate), angka partisipasi sekolah (school enrollment ratio) dan lama studi yang ditempuh (mean years of schooling) dan rasio murid laki-laki dan perempuan. Beberapa hal patut menjadi catatan terkait dengan capaian Indonesia menyasar MDGs (Jurnal Kependudukan Indonesia, Vol. II, No. 2 tahun 2007): Pencapaian Indonesia dalam SER mencapai diatas 90%, R diatas 90%.

Capaian di atas berbanding dengan Laporan “A Future Within Reach” maupun Laporan MDGs Asia-Pasifik tahun 2006 yang menempatkan Indonesia pada kategori terbawah bersama Banglades, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Papua Nugini dan Filipina/ Menurut Global Monitoring Report (GMR) 2008 yang dikeluarkan UNESCO, Indeks Pembangunan Pendidikan atau Education Development Index (EDI) Indonesia mengalami penurunan dari posisi 58 menjadi 62 (Kompas, 31 Des 2007:14), nilai total EDI yang diperoleh Indonesia juga mengalami penurunan sebesar 0,003 poin dari 0,938 menjadi 0,935. Sistem penilaian EDI membagi tiga kategori skor, yaitu kelompok negara dengan indeks pendidikan tinggi (0,950 keatas), sedang (0,800 sampai dibawah 0,950) dan rendah (dibawah 0,800) dan Indonesia ditempatkan sejajar dengan, Malaysia, Filipina, Vietnam, Myanmar dan Kamboja dalam kelompok negara dengan kategori EDI sedang. Sementara Indeks Pendidikan Brunei Darussalam menempati peringkat tinggi (Kompas, 31 Desember 2007).

Berdasar data di atas, tampaknya perlu perjuangan ekstra keras bagi Indonesia untuk mencapai target tersebut. Perlu keberpihakan semua pihak untuk mencapai target tersebut, pemerintah pusat, pemerintah daerah dan masyarakat. Mengacu kepada Undang-Undang No. 22/1999 yang direvisi menjadi UU No. 32/2004 tentang otonomi daerah, pemerintah daerahlah yang memiliki tugas untuk menyelenggarakan urusan pelayanan pendidikan dasar (SD dan SLTP). Dengan demikian, upaya pemerintah untuk dapat mencapai Tujuan Pembangunan Millenium dalam bidang pendidikan harus juga melibatkan dukungan pemerintah daerah.

Masalah berikut yang muncul adalah terkait dengan otonomi daerah, dimana, terkadang, Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Panjang (RPJP) dan Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Menengah (RPJM) tidak selalu menjadi acuan pemerintah daerah. Persoalan yang muncul kemudian adalah rencana dan realisasi berbagai program pembangunan di daerah tidak selalu seiring dan sejalan dengan rencana pembangunan yang dibuat oleh pemerintah pusat. Misalnya saja terkait dengan anggaran, proporsi anggaran pemerintah kabupaten/kota terbesar bukan untuk belanja publik bidang pendidikan (Dyah Ratih Sulistyanti, 2007) melainkan untuk belanja rutin yang berupa belanja pemerintah untuk gaji pegawai. Pada priode 2001-2004 rata-rata pengeluaran untuk pembangunan hanya berkisar 11-14%, sedangkan proporsi yang dialokasikan untuk belanja rutin/belanja pegawai rata-rata adalah sebesar 85%. , berdasarkan penelitian Governance and Decentralization Survey (GDS) (Dwiyanto et.al ,2003), menemukan bahwa setelah implementasi undang-undang otonomi daerah ternyata tidak membawa perubahan yang significant pada pelayanan kesehatan dan pendidikan berdasar indikator seperti: keberadaan Perda yang mengatur masalah pelayanan pendidikan dan kesehatan, orientasi Perda tersebut kepada kepentingan pemerintah atau kepentingan publik, dan alokasi anggaran untuk pelayanan dalam bidang kesehatan dan pendidikan. Hal senada diungkapkan oleh Purwanto (2006: 6) Otonomi Daerah ternyata tidak membuat pelayanan pendidikan berubah menjadi lebih baik. Di beberapa daerah, sejak otonomi justru membuat pelayanan bidang pendidikan makin mahal dan tidak terjangkau oleh masyarakat.

Namun di sinilah peluang itu dapat di manfaatkan menjadi sebuah keunggulan (revenue), pemerintah yang tanggap dan mampu merespon situasi gloal berdasar kemampuan daerah niscaya akan mendapat kredit poin lebih besar dimata masyarakat, yang pada gilirannya meningkatkan kualitas anak didik.

Pencapaian target pendidikan pada MDGs, sejalan dengan, dan berhuungan dengan pengentasan kemiskinan. Seperti telah diketahui, mata rantai kemiskinan terjadi karena rendahnya produktivitas orang miskin yang disebabkan rendahnya kualitas SDM (pendidikan dan kondisi kesehatan) orang miskin tersebut. Rendahnya SDM orang miskin itu sendiri disebabkan kondisi kemiskinan mereka sehingga mereka tidak mampu melakukan investasi untuk pendidikan dan kesehatan.

Meskipun pendidikan dan kesejahteraan tidak berhubungan langsung, Sebagai sebuah hak dasar, bagi masyarakat miskin, pendidikan merupakan salah satu alat mobilitas vertikal terpenting. Kesempatan untuk meningkatkan posisi ekonomi dalam masyarakat hanya dapat diperoleh ketika aset berupa modal materil tidak di miliki. Pendidikan merupakan investasi dan kesempatan untuk berompetisi guna mendapatkan kesempatan memperoleh penghidupan yang lebih baik di masa depan dan turut terllibat dalam proses pembangunan.

Dengan demikian, dapat disimpulkan bahwa pendidikan yang terprogram baik dan menjangkau semua (education for all) seperti target MDGs, dengan kualitas tertentu sangat mungkin menjadi instrumen yang paling efektif (most effective instrument) untuk memotong mata rantai atau lingkaran setan kemiskinan (the vicious circle of poverty)

The United Nations’ 2007-08 Human Development Report is about climate change. One of the report’s many significant findings concerns the role of the media. It is quite frank on this issue: “The reality is that the media are probably the most powerful of all our institutions today” (67). The overall gist of its position with regard to the media is striking. Paraphrasing, it argues that under the influence of the media, Americans in particular are having a hard time recognizing the predictable consequences of their actions, which have contributed significantly to the acceleration of global warming. This mass-mediatized political disorientation and consequent inaction is tragic. A very large question mark has been placed over the ultimate viability of the human experiment, and most Americans don’t even seem to notice. The report, which is freely available on the internet (click the above link or the image below), is keyword searchable. Keyword searching provides easy access, for example, to the media theme which runs throughout the report.

UN Human Development Report 2007-08

The Mahbub-ul-Haq Human Development Centre (MHHDC), the Centre onwards, was established by late Dr. Mahbub-ul-Haq former finance minister of Pakistan. Since his death the management is in the wrong hands. There is no system of annual audits. Only a few donors conduct annual audits of their programs while others rely on reports provided by the management. The centre has been producing false expenditure reports using wrong exchange rates. By doing so funds are channeled away from project activities and later diverted to other accounts. The Centre receives huge funding from UN but does not report its utilization.  Those who raise voice or show concern over wrongdoings they are forcefully removed from their position without letting them present their case to the board of directors. The board of directors is in fact composed of ex-bureaucrats who close their eyes and do not like to probe into excesses committed by the management. Recently, the Centre channeled away a major portion of funds meant for one of the project’s activities over past few years undermining project outcomes.

Though Centre writes about issues like human security, human development, voice and accountability; however, the the Centre does not believe in these ideals. Not only the staff training needs are ignored but they are discouraged from participation in national forums and presenting papers at conferences. Though donors provide funds in the name of staff training needs and development, the Centre does not allow staff’s personal development either.

The quality of research and reports produced is declining. There is no system of peer reviews of reports the Centre is producing. Some specific examples of declining quality from reports will be posted here soon, so please check back later.

Since Dr. Haq’s death in July 1998, the Centre has seen 5 executive directors who have failed to bring any reform in governance.

Though protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) is part of its contracts with different funding organizations; however, the Centre has failed to honor its commitment. Not only it uses pirated software for producing research reports, it has also been reported as publishing work of other authors without crediting them.

Ironically, the senior staff which is also responsible for management roles as well does not understand the concept of “Loyalty Voice and Exit.” to them loyalty means keep a lid on the wrong doings for their own interest; therefore, they do not try to raise their voice for internal accountability or exit. They have reached a compromise of keeping their eyes shuts and lips sealed and in return they are producing low quality reports. It has helped establish a circle in which no one asks them about the quality and relevance of research work they are producing. Because late Dr. Haq’s name and marketing of his legacy is credible anyway; therefore, staff uses the Centre as a platform to launch themselves into bigger orbits leaving the problems intact behind at the Centre.

The manager and adviser for finance consistently reports shortfall in project fund while money is there in the bank account.

http://www.mhhdc.org/

]]> http://msjillani.wordpress.com/2008/12/19/reports-about-pakistan/ Fri, 19 Dec 2008 08:54:09 +0000 msjillani http://msjillani.wordpress.com/2008/12/19/reports-about-pakistan/ http://taraqee.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/pakistan-making-poverty-history/ Thu, 03 Jul 2008 05:44:59 +0000 Raza Rumi http://taraqee.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/pakistan-making-poverty-history/ http://sanooaung.wordpress.com/2008/06/10/extracts-of-important-indicators-to-showthe-wrong-priority-given-by-spdc/ Tue, 10 Jun 2008 05:12:45 +0000 sanooaung http://sanooaung.wordpress.com/2008/06/10/extracts-of-important-indicators-to-showthe-wrong-priority-given-by-spdc/ http://acturca.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/invest-in-youth-un-report-tells-turkey/ Fri, 28 Mar 2008 19:32:26 +0000 acturca http://acturca.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/invest-in-youth-un-report-tells-turkey/

Turkish Daily News, 22 March 2008

Fulya Özerkan

In Turkey there are more than 12 million people aged between 15 and 24, or 17.6 percent of the entire population, and this demographic window of opportunity can turn upside down if Turkey fails to invest in its youth, says the UN’s 2008 development report.

As the fastest growing country in the region with one of the largest and most dynamic youth populations, Turkey has 15 years to turn this window of opportunity into an advantage, suggests a United Nations report for Turkey, adding that failure to do so will upset social balances and may lead to nightmare scenarios.

“If Turkey can give the right opportunities to its youth today, invest in their education in order to prepare them for higher value-added jobs in the future, the demographic window of opportunity can be utilized effectively,” according to the 2008 Human Development Report for Turkey released Friday.

“But if this opportunity is mismanaged, unemployment, poverty and social unrest may lie ahead,” it warned.

The report “Youth in Turkey” published by the U.N. Development Program offers guidance on how employment, education and health policies for youth need to be reshaped to ensure these policies are people-oriented and better prepare the country for the upcoming demographic challenges.

The report has used an unorthodox research approach: It is to a significant extent based on a comprehensive “State of Youth Survey” which canvassed the views of 3,322 individuals aged 15-24 in 12 different regions of the country. It also included 24 focus group meetings with young people and four focus groups with adults.

In Turkey there are more than 12 million people aged between 15 and 24, or 17.6 percent of the entire population, according to the 2007 population census.

“This situation will change, however,” warned the report defining Turkey’s youth as people between 15 and 24 years of age.

“Already, the percentages of 0-14 and 0-19 year-olds are declining. By 2040, the only rising proportion of the population will belong to the 65-year-olds and above. Therefore, 2040 will mark the end of the Turkish demographic window of opportunity.”

The U.N. report called for comprehensive policies to ensure that the country has a healthy, educated and skilled society to face the challenges of crucial next 15 years and beyond.

“Such an episode is a one-off opportunity in a country’s history,” it stressed.

First a job

The favorable ratio of young to old presents opportunities as well as challenges. Unemployment is one of the challenges facing Turkey. Failure to create job opportunities especially for youth will lead to most worrying levels of high unemployment, said the report.

The unemployment rate for young people currently stands at 17-18 percent, almost twice the national average. The U.N. report revealed that in Turkey young people are twice as likely to be unemployed than the older population.

“You complete 16 years of education, go through all that but cannot find a job. How can we think straight? To do that one has to have decent living conditions. One’s stomach must be full. You cannot get a break and start producing projects and ideas to improve your country. First, one must have a job,” an unnamed secondary school graduate from Turkey’s Aegean city of Izmir was quoted as saying in the report. Nearly 40 percent of Turkish youth – almost 5 million people – are idle, neither working nor attending school, an alarming threat for the society.

Describing this group as “invisible or less visible youth,” the U.N. report said these include: Women who are neither in education nor at work at about 2.2 million; the physically handicapped are some 650,000; young people who have given up all hope and stopped seeking jobs number around 300,000; juvenile delinquents are some 22,000; and street children and youth living on the streets, internally displaced, or victims of human trafficking and others who rarely get noticed or mentioned in survey studies or in the media.

“Special attention must be paid to those youth who are currently ‘invisible’,” it said.

Being a ‘nonexistent’ young woman

The situation of adolescents in Turkey is complicated by gender disparities that still frequently reflect and emphasize the traditional preference for men and boys over women and girls, according to the report, underlining that gender discrimination has not been tackled with sufficient strength.

There is discrimination in concepts for boys and girls, it said. “The unpredictable temper of adolescents struggling with the profound physical and psychological changes typical of their age is acknowledged in young males as ‘delikanlilar’ or crazy bloods, for instance, while girls of similar age are not treated with the same understanding.”

The report said the gender gap hit education as well when significant numbers of girls drop out of school after primary education or even earlier during the first five years and emphasized that this is especially the case in low-income areas where disparities in girls and boys’ enrolment in primary education are more pronounced.

Highlighting another bitter truth of Turkey – honor killings – the report said murder in the name of honor is the most severe type of violence against women. “Turkish Police has recorded 1,091 honor killings in the last five years. And many of the honor killings are not reported to police; they are instead shown as suicide,” the report said, citing an interview with Professor Ahsen Sirin of Ege University.

Catch up with international progress

Turkey started a strong process of modernization under its founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk after 1923 but is lagging behind countries with comparable per capita income in the area of social policies, according to the report urging Turkey to catch up with international progress.

“A youth policy is important to ensure higher levels of human development, as defined by greater human choices. But it is also crucial in order to stave off potentially crushing demographic challenges.”

Of utmost importance is finalizing an employment strategy, the report said.

“Identifying the specific features, constraints, and opportunities which matter most in terms of employment creation will be crucial. Policies need to be developed in a participatory manner that builds the trust of youth in political institutions, laying the foundations for sustained human development.”

Droogtes door klimaatverandering zorgen volgens een VN-rapport voor een toename van het aantal ondervoede kinderen in Ethiopië. Het ‘Human Development’- rapport 2007/2008 met als titel ‘Bestrijden van klimaatverandering: menselijke solidariteit in een verdeelde wereld’ van het Ontwikkelingsprogramma van de Verenigde Naties (UNPD) stelt dat kinderen van 5 jaar of jonger 36% meer kans maken ondervoed te zijn en 41% meer kans maken op groeistoornissen wanneer ze geboren worden in een periode van droogte in Ethiopië. Het rapport rekent dat dit zich vertaalt in twee miljoen ondervoed geboren kinderen in het land in 2005 alleen. Het rapport werd al in december vorig jaar in Brazilië gelanceerd, maar werd afgelopen maandag in Ethiopië voorgesteld.

Het rapport zegt dat tussen 2000 en 2004 één op de negentien mensen in ontwikkelingslanden, maar slecht één op de duizend vijfhonderd mensen in rijke landen, getroffen werden door klimaatrampen. Los van de bedreigingen op lange termijn, treft de klimaatverandering nu al een deel van de armste en meest kwetsbare gemeenschappen in de wereld. Toegenomen droogtes, overstromingen en stormen kelderen mogelijkheden en versterken ongelijkheden. Klimaatverandering bedreigt in de eerste plaats en het meest direct de ontwikkelingslanden met de laagste inkomens (hoewel zij er het minst hebben toe bijgedragen). Zij zullen volgens het rapport de impact van de globale opwarming van de aarde niet binnen enkele eeuwen, maar binnen enkele jaren of decennia voelen.

Ethiopië is één van de landen die zich sterk inzetten om de Millenniumdoelstellingen van 2015 te halen. Het land heeft vooruitgang gemaakt in het terugdringen van de armoede en geraakt stilaan op het juiste spoor naar ontwikkeling. Hoewel veel landen zoals Ethiopië een significante vooruitgang hebben geboekt en vele mensen boven de armoedegrens hebben gelicht, wordt het nu duidelijk dat klimaatverandering één van de nieuwe factoren is waarmee rekening moet worden gehouden.

De Ethiopische regering zegt dat de strijd tegen armoede en de strijd tegen de effecten van klimaatverandering met elkaar samenhangen en beseft dat de beide problemen tegelijk moeten worden aangepakt. Bij de voorstelling van het UNPD-rapport in het Conferentiecentrum van de VN in Addis Abeba, zei Abera Deressa, minister van Landbouw en Landelijke Ontwikkeling, dat de regering de ontwikkeling van agro-bosbouw (combinatie van bomen en struiken met gewassen en vee) en landbouwprojecten die het behoud van de natuurlijke balans beogen om op die manier de degradatie tegen te gaan, wil stimuleren. De minister onderstreepte dat bovenop de lopende inspanningen om de bestaande milieuproblemen op te lossen, bijkomende maatregelen zullen moeten genomen worden om de nieuwe milieuproblemen te verzachten die door klimaatverandering teweeg worden gebracht.

© All Africa, Biruk Girma, 26.02.08 (kdg)

The human development index (HDI) is a composite index that measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, as measured by life expectancy at birth; knowledge, as measured by the adult literacy rate and the combined gross enrolment ratio for primary, secondary and tertiary schools; and a decent standard of living, as measured by GDP per capita in purchasing power parity (PPP) US dollars.

Importance
HDI serves the following purposes.
• To capture the attention of policy makers, media and NGOs and to draw their attention away from the more usual economic statistics to focus instead on human outcomes. The HDI was created to re-emphasize that people and their capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for assessing the development of a country, not economic growth.
• To question national policy choices – asking how two countries with the same level of income per person can end up with such different human development outcomes (HDI levels). For example, Viet Nam and Pakistan have similar levels of income per person, but life expectancy and literacy differ greatly between the two countries, with Viet Nam having a much higher HDI value than Pakistan. These striking contrasts immediately stimulate debate on government policies on health and education, asking why what is achieved in one country is far from the reach of another.
• To highlight wide differences within countries, between provinces or states, across gender, ethnicity, and other socioeconomic groupings. Highlighting internal disparities along these lines has raised national debate in many countries.

Drawbacks
The HDI does not reflect political participation or gender inequalities. The HDI and the other composite indices can only offer a broad proxy on some of the key the issues of human development, gender disparity, and human poverty.

HD Report 2005
The US has been given the 10th rank, China 85th and India 127th rank. China and India falls in the category of medium human development while US in high human development.

Conclusion & suggestions
We have a long way to go in the path of human development. With more than 50% of population poor, we really have a long path. The government needs to put in more funds for developing backward areas and it has to seek the help of the private sector in this development process. Only a development process with public private partnership will be successful. India needs to reform its education sector mainly requires more qualified teachers who have to be given adequate remuneration. The current wages for teachers need to be revised. Education is an important tool for enhancing growth in a country and also the most efficient way.
For sustenance we need proper health care centres and good hospitals and medical colleges. We need to have efficient and innovative pharmaceutical companies who should be willing to reduce the exorbitant rates of medicines.
To enable connectivity, proper transport must be readily and cheaply available. Roads must be well laid and rural connectivity must be specifically implemented with haste.
The central, state and the local self governments need to work together to achieve high rates of human development and growth!

References
HDR 2005