Human development: Concern over Pakistan’s fall in ranking

ISLAMABAD: The Human Development Foundation (HDF) has expressed concern over the UN Human Development Report in which Pakistan dropped 25 places in the Human Development Index rankings worldwide to 145 out of 187 countries over the last year. HDF Chief Executive Officer Azhar Saleem said in a statement on Sunday that “Income distribution has worsened and environmental degradation threatens future prospects of the country. This matter should be of great concern to Pakistan”. Explaining the situation, he said that Pakistan still suffers from inadequate incomes, limited schooling opportunities, and life expectancies far below world averages. He said that the UN Human Development Index measures poverty, literacy, education, life expectancy and other factors. Pakistan can achieve substantially higher rankings if there is a coordinated effort by the government and different non-governmental organisations working in Pakistan, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 7^th,  2011.