Arrange the following countries in descending order as per the Global Human Development Index, 2019: 1. Germany 2. USA 3. South Africa 4. India Select the correct answer using the code given below.
- (a)1, 2, 3, 4
- (b)1, 3, 2, 4
- (c)3, 2, 1, 4
- (d)4, 3, 2, 1
Correct — A, 1, 2, 3, 4. The order asked for is Germany, then the USA, then South Africa, then India, and the four sit in three different development bands, which is what makes the ranking recoverable without memorising numbers. In the 2019 Human Development Report — the edition the question names — Germany appeared among the top five countries in the world with an HDI of 0.939, alongside Norway, Switzerland, Ireland and Hong Kong. The United States is also in the very high human development band but well down that band, not near its top. South Africa sits in the high band. India ranked 129th of 189 countries and territories, in the medium band. Descending order therefore runs 1, 2, 3, 4 exactly as listed.
- (b)1, 3, 2, 4 — Places South Africa above the United States. South Africa's HDI has never approached the American figure; the two are a full band apart.
- (c)3, 2, 1, 4 — Puts South Africa at the top of the list, ahead of both Germany and the USA. Nothing in any edition of the report supports that.
- (d)4, 3, 2, 1 — The list read backwards — ascending, not descending. India lowest of the four is right; India highest is not.
The Human Development Index is published by the UNDP in its annual Human Development Report. It is the geometric mean of three normalised dimension indices: a long and healthy life, measured by life expectancy at birth; knowledge, measured by expected years of schooling for children and mean years of schooling for adults; and a decent standard of living, measured by gross national income per capita at purchasing power parity. Countries are then sorted into four bands — very high, high, medium and low human development.
Order questions like this one are easier when you stop trying to recall ranks and instead place each country in a band. Two rich industrial economies come first, an upper-middle-income economy next, a lower-middle-income one last. The only genuine decision is Germany against the USA, and Germany has been the higher of the two in edition after edition — in the most recent report it stands 5th with 0.959 against the American 19th with 0.937. Anchor the numbers to 2019 and treat them as a snapshot: ranks move a little every year, and the whole table was recalculated after the pandemic years knocked back life expectancy almost everywhere.
- The 2019 Human Development Report ranked India 129th out of 189 countries and territories.
- Germany was among the top five in that report with an HDI of 0.939; the top five were Norway, Switzerland, Ireland, Germany and Hong Kong.
- The HDI is a geometric mean of health, education and income indices — not a simple average.
- The four bands are very high, high, medium and low human development; Germany and the USA are very high, South Africa high, India medium.
- In the most recent report Germany ranks 5th with 0.959 and the United States 19th with 0.937, so the German-over-American ordering has held.
Three bands, four countries. The bands settle the order without a single rank being recalled.
- Reading rank and value as the same thing — a country can improve its HDI value and still slip in rank.
- Comparing HDI values across different reports; the UNDP recalculates back-series, so editions are not directly comparable.
- Assuming a middle-income country like South Africa must outrank a large economy like India on every index — on HDI it does, on total GDP it does not.
Either as an ordering item like this one, or as a statements item on which indicators the index uses and which body publishes it.
As per the Human Development Index given by UNDP, which one of the following sequences of South Asian countries is correct, in the order of higher to lower development?
- (a) India—Sri Lanka—Pakistan—Maldives
- (b) Maldives—Sri Lanka—India—Pakistan
- (c) Sri Lanka—Maldives—India—Pakistan
- (d) Maldives—India—Pakistan—Sri Lanka
Answer(b) Maldives—Sri Lanka—India—Pakistan
The same task with a South Asian cast: sort four countries by HDI from higher to lower. The method is identical — band the countries first, then order inside the band.
Which of the following concepts are considered as pillars of Human Development ? 1. Equity 2. Sustainability 3. Productivity 4. Security Select the correct answer using the code given below :
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- (b) 3 and 4 only
- (c) 1, 2 and 3 only
- (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
Answer(c) 1, 2 and 3 only
Comes at human development from the theory side rather than the league table — equity, sustainability, productivity and empowerment are the four pillars, and the index in this question is the attempt to measure them.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which one of the following is not a dimension used in the construction of the Human Development Index?
- (a)Life expectancy at birth
- (b)Mean and expected years of schooling
- (c)Gross national income per capita
- (d)Rate of unemployment
Answer(d) Rate of unemployment — the HDI uses health, education and income only; employment is not one of its dimensions.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Human Development Report is published annually by which one of the following organisations?
- (a)World Bank
- (b)United Nations Development Programme
- (c)International Monetary Fund
- (d)World Economic Forum
Answer(b) United Nations Development Programme — the World Bank publishes the World Development Report and the WEF the Global Competitiveness Report.