Tessie Baumann February 4, 2020

Jahan and Rosling Response

What is human development? Why does it matter? Everyone always jumps to the conclusion that human development is necessary, but rarely do they answer the question why or define the purpose of human development. Those words are thrown around, used in whatever way most deem desirable to their particular situation, but if there is to be real change in this world, then a concrete definition of what that change is aiming to achieve needs to be identified.

According to Jahan, human development is meant to enlarge the choices that people have in every part of life. In order to do this, there are two things that need to be accomplished: the capability of humans has to be enhanced and the opportunities they have to use those capabilities need to be improved. Jahan points out that one way to look at the situation is to imagine it as an equation. If the capabilities are enhanced on one side due to more resources, better nutrition, and an increased access to healthcare and this is balanced with opportunities such as employment, credit, entrepreneurship, and more on the other side, than the scene is set for human development. Otherwise, if each side of the equation is not equal, the result is human frustration which leads to the loss of human potential. Additionally, another important aspect to consider is that human development is of, for, and by the people. Ultimately, human beings themselves are the ones who want to develop human resources and capital, ensure that they receive the benefits of human development, and are the ones partaking in the operation.

During his talk, there are some specific elements of human development that Jahan makes examples of, telling his listeners that these are some issues that need to be focused on in the world right now. These targeted issues include the problem of youth employment, the gender aspect of work, the fact that work in agriculture and the rural economy is important since it accounts for the largest portion of jobs around the world, and the informal sector, which is the foundation for many societies. All of these issues desperately need attention if the conditions of human development are to be improved in the near future.

While there is technically a tool called the Human Development Index (HDI), the truth is there is no method that can fully capture the level of human development that has taken place. Still, the HDI does its best to reveal as much information as possible through its breath and focus measures. The breadth measure is like the accounting part of the HDI. It shows the numbers such as birth and mortality rates and delivers a picture of many of the elements that comprise the human development of a society. The focus measure, on the other hand, takes a look at three specific dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, knowledge, and standard of living. These are aspects of human development that provide opportunities for other types of human development.

Another speaker, on the other hand, points out the relationship between health and development, and how it is important for health to precede wealth in order to reach that goal of development most efficiently. In his talk, “The Best Stats You’ve Ever Seen,” Rosling shows how over a timeline countries have been gravitating towards higher levels of prosperity and health. It is clear, however, that there are different pathways to achieve the desired goal. Based on the numbers, Rosling is able to prove that countries can reach greater levels of human development faster when they focus on health first before looking to increase their monetary gains. Some examples include the pathways taken by South Korea, Brazil, Uganda, and the United Arab Emirates from 1960 to 2003. South Korea chose to place health as its priority and quickly catapulted up the scale while Uganda was lagging behind, searching for a wealthier economy and hardly making any progress at all. Brazil was in between the two countries, moving faster than Uganda by putting more of an emphasis on health, but not quite up to speed with South Korea. Finally, the United Arab Emirates actually started on the rich side of the graph but lower on the human development scale. When the oil prices started dropping, the United Arab Emirates was able to save its economy from going too far south by taking an interest in the health of its citizens.

One warning Rosling leaves his listeners when it comes to looking at the numbers for human development, though, is the danger of averages. He explains how there can be a lot of difference within the countries. Oftentimes, the richest twenty percent and poorest twenty percent are on contrasting parts of the human development scale, as shown by Uganda, South Africa, and Niger. When people work to provide aid to help further the human development in other countries, their efforts can be off if they solely focus on the averages. South Africa’s top twenty percent, for example, soar way above Niger’s lowest twenty percent, since Niger had experienced famine at one point, but both are countries in Africa. When many people think of Africa, they believe that the whole continent needs help and sends aid there in general, but the truth is, certain places in Africa need the assistance while others do not. Averages can prevent people from seeing the facts and can paint a contradictory picture from what is really happening.