HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

INDEX
BY SIDAK DANG
GRADE XII-C
 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

• I have Written my essay on Human Development Index as i have a desire

to extend my knowledge and learn more about it. I believe that my
educational background has instilled in me the qualities required to meet
the rigor of this demanding course. I have also worked on the same topic
in my economics project and would like to enhance it into my English
project.
 OBJECTIVES

I will be able to answer the following ;

1. What is human development index ?
2. What is happiness index ?
3. The case of bhutan
 ACTION PLAN
• The action plan for my project is as follows:
1. Started my project on 10 of May: Wrote the Statement Of Purpose
2. 20th of May: Searched about the topic on Google and wrote 30-40
words as introduction
3. 3rd of June: Continued to research and wrote about my 1 st objective “
what is human development index.
4. 14th of June: wrote about my 2nd objective “ what is happiness index”
and started to write a bit on my 3rd objective.
 5. 19th of June: Completed my 3rd objective “ case of Bhutan”
6. 4th of July : Gave my project a finishing touch and added cover page,self
reflection, pictures and bibliography.
 THE REPORT

• Introduction:
Human development index measures the actual level of human development
(taking into account inequality) of a country , with the human development
index viewed as index of the potential human development that can be
achieved if there is no inequality. HDI also ranks countries on a scale of
development conceptualized in terms of capabilities of human within the
countries to function.
• WHAT IS HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX?
The human development index is a tool to measure a country’s overall
achievment in its social and economic dimensions. The HDI is a statistic of
life expectancy, education and per capita income indicators, which is used to
rank countries into four tiers of human development. The HDI is a measure
of economic development and economic welfare.
• Life expectancy:
Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is
expected to live, based on the year of its birth , its current age and other
demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life
expectancy at birth , which can be defined in two ways. The HDI utilizes fpur
key metrics life expectancy at birth, to assess a long and healthy life.
• The HDI can 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 HDI simplifies and captures only
part of what human development entails.A fuller picture of a country’s
level of human development requires analysis of other indicators and
information presented in the HDR statistical annex.
• WHAT IS HAPPINESS INDEX?
The Happiness Index measures life satisfaction, the feeling of happiness, and other
happiness. Domains: psychological well-being, health, time balance, community,
social support, education, arts. And culture, environment, governance, material well-
being, and work.The World Happiness Report is a publication that contains articles
and rankings of national happiness, based on respondent ratings of their own lives,
which the report also correlates with various life factors.
• HISTORY
In July 2011, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution 65/309
Happiness: Towards a Holistic Definition of Development inviting member
countries to measure the happiness of their people and to use the data to
help guide public policy. On April 2, 2012, this was followed by the first UN
High Level Meeting called Wellbeing and Happiness.
• The first World Happiness Report was released on April 1, 2012 as a
foundational text for the UN High Level Meeting: Well-being and
Happiness: Defining a New Economic Paradigm, drawing international
attention.The first report outlined the state of world happiness, causes of
happiness and misery, and policy implications highlighted by case studies. In
2013, the second World Happiness Report was issued, and in 2015 the
third. Since 2016, it has been issued on an annual basis on the 20th of
March, to coincide with the UN’s International Day of Happiness.
• THE CASE OF BHUTAN
Bhutan is the only country in the world to officially proclaim the gross national happiness as the
measure of the country’s progress.
Macroeconomics of Bhutan
Situated deep in the eastern Himalayan mountains, Bhutan is often overshadowed by its more
prominent neighbors: China and India. But, despite its quiet status, the country has constantly
made headlines for a variety of socioeconomic achievements. Bhutan remains, for example, the
first and only carbon-negative country in the world, and they have also recently prevented the
COVID-19 pandemic from overwhelming its population, with only one Bhutanese citizen
passing away from the virus to date.
• Nevertheless, it is the Gross National Happiness Index (GNH), Bhutan’s main
macroeconomic indicator, that stands as the country’s most radical achievement to date.
The GNH’s construction is simple: rather than measuring the aggregate spending from a
country’s population, Bhutan’s GNH seeks to measure their total happiness.The
“happiness” in this case is obviously a subjective concept, but the indicators for GNH are
based on tangible statistics of measures ranging from economic development to
environmental protection levels.
• Bhutan is also not the only country to have shifted macroeconomic analysis towards
more holistic social indicators, as several other countries such as the United Kingdom
and New Zealand have incorporated wellness goals into their policies. However, no
country has put the ideas of happiness as central to their public policy decisions as
Bhutan does through their GNH. Particularly with the country’s recent success during
the pandemic, it then might be worthwhile to ask: has GNH actually played a significant
role in helping Bhutan thrive?
• Compared to GDP’s technical measures of spending and output, Bhutan’s
own GNH index takes a more holistic approach to measuring a country’s
growth. One of its most striking differences comes down to its equal
weighting of economic and non-economic aspects of the country, as
exemplified by the four pillars that the GNH index encompasses:
sustainable and equitable development, conservation of the environment,
preservation and promotion of culture, and good governance.
 SELF REFLECTION

• This project helped me discover a vast topic and enhance my writing skills
by a lot. It also enhanced my reading skills as i went through many articles
on the internet . This project helped me discovery abilities and develop
self confidence that i can achieve everything if i put my thoughts into it.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. https://www.who.int/news-
room/spotlight/the%E2%80%A2impact%E2%80%A2of%E2%80%A2covid%E2%80%A219
%E2%80%A2on%E2%80%A2global%E2%80%A2health%E2%80%A2goals
2. https://www.who.int/news/item/13%E2%80%A210%E2%80%A22020%E2%80%A2impact
%E2%80%A2of%E2%80%A2covid%E2%80%A219%E2%80%A2on%E2%80%A2people%E
2%80%99s%E2%80%A2livelihoods%E2%80%A2thier%E2%80%A2and%E2%80%A2our%E
2%80%A2food%E2%80%A2systems