SHAPING THE FUTURE HOW CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS CAN POWER HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

FIGURE 1.1:
The Human Development Index marks
improvement in all regions
FIGURE 1.2:
Inequality deducts from human development
achievements in all regions
Source: Based on UNDP 2015a. Source: Based on UNDP 2015a.
Losses from inequality
are greatest for income
in East Asia and the
Pacific, and highest for
education and longevity
in South Asia
20
in their human development ranking relative
to other countries, while 9 saw a decline and
6 witnessed no change. 7 Despite significant
progress in recent decades, 19 Asia-Pacific
countries are still below the global average on
the HDI, 8 underscoring that while the region
may have achieved an ‘economic miracle’, it has
not yet attained a ‘human development miracle’.
INEQUALITY RESULTS IN HUMAN
DEVELOPMENT LOSSES
Inequality in the distribution of the three dimensions
of the HDI is striking in Asia-Pacific,
as captured in the Inequality-adjusted Human
Development Index (IHDI). The average human
development loss due to inequality for the world
is 22.8 percent, but it is 28.7 percent for South
Asia. Though human development loss due
to inequality is somewhat low at 19.4 percent
for East Asia and the Pacific, it is still high
compared to 13 percent in Europe and central
Asia (Figure 1.2).
While losses due to inequality are greatest
in terms of income in East Asia and the Pacific,
they are highest for education and longevity in
South Asia. Among 24 Asia-Pacific countries
where the IHDI was calculated in 2014, 9 the
Islamic Republic of Iran had the most severe
shortfalls—33.6 percent of its HDI value was
lost due to inequality, followed by Kiribati
at 31.5 percent, Afghanistan at 31.4 percent,
Timor-Leste at 30.7 percent, Pakistan at 29.9
percent, Bhutan at 29.8 percent, Bangladesh
at 29.4 percent and India at 28.6 percent. 10
Inequality in access to health, education and
basic services affirms that inclusiveness remains
a challenge in the region despite noteworthy
progress in poverty reduction.
GENDER GAPS ARE WIDE IN SOME
COUNTRIES
In parts of Asia-Pacific, gender gaps remain
wide—imposing large limitations on prospects
for demographic dividends, since women’s participation
in the labour force and ability to make
choices related to education and fertility can
make a substantial contribution. The Gender
Development Index (GDI), which captures
gender inequalities in human development,
reveals a gap in South Asia that is larger than
that of any other region.
Among 29 Asia-Pacific countries and areas,
11 the gender gap is highest in Afghanistan
and lowest in Thailand. Globally, of the 148