Somalia is facing an unprecedented risk of famine.
United Nations Human Development Report: 90% of countries are lagging behind in human development
UN Photo/Fardosa Hussein
Somalia is facing an unprecedented risk of famine.
September 8, 2022
economic development
The latest edition of the UN's flagship report on human development, the Human Development Report 2021/2022, was released on Thursday. The report warns that multiple crises are holding back human development, which is regressing in the vast majority of countries. Here are five points that the report draws attention to.
Almost all countries see human development reversal in first year of Covid-19 outbreak UN
Almost all countries saw human development reversal in first year of Covid-19 outbreak
The 2021/2022 Human Development Report, titled "Uncertain times, unstable lives, shaping our future in a rapidly changing world", paints a picture of ongoing global social crises and the potential for the world to face Growing poverty and injustice.
Topping the list of events leading to major global chaos is the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which, combined with sweeping social and economic shifts, dangerous planetary changes and markedly increased polarization, have overwhelmed the world .
Human Development Index declines for the first time in three decades
The Human Development Index is an indicator used by the United Nations Development Programme to measure a country's health, education and living standards. For the first time since UNDP launched the Human Development Index 32 years ago, the index has declined globally for two consecutive years.
That means the crisis is deepening in many regions, with Latin America, the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia being hit particularly hard.
Human development has fallen back to 2016 levels, the report shows, reversing much of the progress needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. These goals make up the 2030 Agenda, the UN's blueprint for a fairer future for people and the planet.
Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, said: "Countries around the world are struggling to cope with a series of crises. We have seen from the rising cost of living and the energy crisis, despite the use of expedient measures such as fossil fuel subsidies. Strategies are attractive, but these immediate relief strategies are slowing down the long-term systemic change we must make."
Steiner went on to call for a renewed sense of global solidarity to tackle "interrelated common challenges". But he acknowledged that the international community is currently "stalled in making these changes".
The report notes that insecurities and polarization of opinions hinder efforts to unite the world's major challenges. Data shows that the most insecure people are more likely to hold extremist views. This phenomenon was already present even before the Covid-19 pandemic
Covid-19 is a 'window to a new reality'
Now that the pandemic is in its third year, the Human Development Report describes it as a "window to a new reality" rather than a return to old ways.
The development of an effective vaccine has been hailed as a landmark achievement that has saved an estimated 20 million lives and demonstrated the enormous power of innovation combined with political will.
At the same time, the rollout of a vaccine has exposed huge inequalities in the global economy. In many low-income countries, where access to vaccines is minimal, women and girls suffer the most, have more household and care responsibilities, and face more violence
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