Category: Human Development Index

Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as defined by Callen (2017) is a quantitative measure of a country’s economic production in a period of a year. Information of how a country is performing economically can be found through the calculation of its GDP as it is achieved by measuring the value of the final goods and services, in terms of money, which is presented in the currency of the particular country. For example, the GDP of Australia for the year 2018 will be presented in Australian Dollar (AUD).Human Development Index (HDI) is a tool that was developed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in 1990 and has since been used to generate the UNDP reports. HDI is used to measure what a country has achieved within a year in terms of the people’s health, their living standards and what they have attained in their education level. HDI thus seems as a social measurement. This essay will compare Kenya’s GDP and HDI reports of 2016 which gives the GDP and HDI information of year 2015. It will then critically analyze the epistemological assumptions, social theory approaches and data collection methodologies. The HDI report is extracted from UNDP Human Development report of 2016 while the GDP report is retrieved from the Kenya Economic Survey publication of 2016 in the Kenya Bureau of Statistics website.

The GDP report 2016 was a descriptive research that used correlational method. It compared data of the years between 2011 to 2015.According to Kenya Bureau of Statistics (2016, p.16), Kenya’s GDP in 2015 grew by 5.6% compared to 5.3 growth in 2014 and this was a result of significant growth in some key sectors among them agriculture; construction; real estate; and financial and insurance.

The GDP presentation and analysis used the positivism approach where only information about the activities of every industry in the country, that contribute to economy, led to the scientific knowledge of the GDP of the year 2015. In a table, each industry was populated with its activities and their contribution within the years 2011- 2015, expressed in Million Kenya Shillings.

For example, in Agriculture, forestry and fishing industry, growing of crops, animal production, support activities to agriculture, forestry and logging, and fishing & aquaculture were the activities, where the growing of crops had the highest price all through the years, with Agriculture industry being the highest contributor of GDP, with 30% in 2015. In a table presenting the contribution growth by industry, the growth in employment in the construction sector for example was attributed to “the infrastructural projects such as the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) and, construction and rehabilitation of roads and construction of non-residential structures”. This analysis is therefore using the positivism approach which assumed people’s employment rate was influenced by construction projects as the external factors. This analysis relies on the epistemological assumption that, “empirical observation is crucial in the sense that theories and explanations can have no credibility unless they can be corroborated through observation of events in the world”.

The GDP report 2016 is hence objective, value free, uses universal principles and facts and uses explanation in the analyses. This relied on the epistemological approach that “Social research should make use of reliable tools and techniques that provide accurate measures of the social phenomenon being studied, and these research tools must not impinge on the thing being measured, not disturb it and not alter it in the process of data collection”.

The GDP report 2016 used the positivism theory approach where data which was collected empirically was used to generalize and explain the phenomena. For example, data on different industries and their activities, whether in prices, growth or decline was used to calculate and generalize the GDP and explain the rise of “GDP by 5.6% in 2015 from 5.3% in 2014”. Empiricism approach was also used in GDP where facts about the economy of Kenya were gathered in the social world to analyze and interpret the GDP, which were “independent of how people interpret them”. For example, the research used the fact that “agriculture industry in Kenya is by far its most prominent and dominant industry, hence as of 2015, the industry accounted for over 25% of the country’s GDP, 20% of employment, 75% of the labor force, and over 50% of revenue from exports”.

The rationale behind using the survey sample method to collect data was to achieve a national sample representing individuals aged 16 years and above, which was valid in statistics, as “the sample was drawn using the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) National Sample Surveys and Evaluation Program (NASSEP V) sampling frame”.

The UN development program gave a positive Human Development report in 2016 where it presented “an increase of 17.3 percent of Kenya’s HDI, with a value increase from 0.473 to 0.555 between the years 1990 and 2015” (UNDP 2016b, p.2). The report shows an overall progress in each of the three indicators with life expectancy at birth leading on the increase by 3.4 years (UNDP 2016b, p.2).The report shows a survey research done on a correlational method where there was comparison of HDI for years between 1990 and 2015, which each HDI indicator being analyzed.

The HDI report used the interpretivism approach where the knowledge provided about the human capabilities of the Kenya is through the researcher’s interpretation of the human capabilities, what he has produced and not what he has discovered hence very subjective. The Human Development report shows Kenya being grouped among “countries in the Medium Human Development Group and Kenya HDI 2015 of 0.555 recorded to be below average of the group but above average of the countries in Sub -Saharan Africa”. This brings to the assumption that objective knowledge is not possible as the knowledge of Kenya being in the group medium human development countries relies with the value and expectation of the researchers of HDI. There is no objective and value free information that indicates Kenya lies on that group.

HDI report used the feminism approach where it critiqued the customary laws in most African countries, including Kenya that deprive women on the rights to own land, which can be used as a form of investment. This deters human development indicator of the standard of living. The report calls for appropriate land legislation to be formulated to supersede customary laws. According to Del Casino (2009) feminism is a theoretical position where it informs a critique of patriarchy. Postmodernism approach which “challenges structuralism as well as other philosophy posting that deep structures such as capitalism and patriarchy determine social and special relations” as Del Casino asserts, has been used to analyze HDI report. The analysis of Kenya’s performance on sustainable development, according to UNDP where it presents the three areas; environmental sustainability, social sustainability and economic sustainability with a 2030 focus agenda, shows Kenya on the road to selfsustainability without help of multinational organizations, non- governmental organizations or Structural Development Adjustments (SAPs). The mention of Mpesa mobile banking to show how mobile phone technology can reach the unbanked as noted by UNDP is an example of progress to economic sustainability in Kenya.

From HDI 2016 report which saw education indicator taking a constant figure of 11.1 and 6.3 for expected years of schooling and mean years of schooling respectively, from 2010 – 2015, the government of Kenya through the Ministry of Education developed a plan to reform education and training and this encompasses the overhaul change of education system from 8-4-4 curriculum to 2-6-3-3 curriculum beginning January 2018. From the GDP 2016 report which showed “exclusion for Kenyans without formal schooling extremely high, at 46.2 per cent, indicating that illiteracy is a significant barrier to financial inclusion”, Kenya Bureau of Statistics (2016, p.274) led to rolling of free primary education and free day secondary education in 2018. The GDP report therefore had an actual use in education policy and planning by the Ministry of Education.

The HDI report in 2016 which shows “20.8 percent of parliamentary seats are held by women, and 27.8 percent of adult women have reached at least a secondary level of education compared to 34.1 percent of their male counterparts”, an indication of women empowerment which contributes to equality will potentially lead to a full implementation of the current two- thirds gender rule being imposed in all public offices or a lobby for a higher fraction like one- quarter. The two- thirds gender rule stipulates that in any elective body, not more than 2/3 of its members should be from one gender. The MPI (Multidimensional Poverty Index) for Kenya which shows living standard indicator having the highest contribution (55.5%) to “overall poverty of deprivations”, has a potential use to the government in formulating of policies that manage food security and nutrition and effective distribution of resources, opening export markets, supporting local financial institutions and private sectors. This will also contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development goals by 2030.

Anthropology is the study of humans, their cultures and societies. It is the study of the others or the unfamiliar which is made familiar and brought to the forefront by anthropologist. Anthropology is subdivided into four main categories: a) archaeological, b) biological, c) linguistics and d) cultural anthropology. Anthropology in India was recognized by academic and nonacademic institutions and organizations for many decades. The focus of this paper is to explore educational anthropology in the Indian context. To begin with, the history of educational anthropology will be briefly touched upon. The educational research of the tribal and rural areas in India as well as the significance and implications of educational anthropology in urban settings will be explored. Educational anthropology in India is a two-part inquiry: 1) what is out there? 2) what needs to be found out? Implications will be discussed, and suggestions will be provided.

Tribal ethnography has been the most researched area in Indian anthropology. After the British administrators and the missionaries’ conducted anthropological research in India, which was termed as “colonized anthropology”. Indian anthropologist traditionally studies the tribes, who were considered marginalized people and their problems were considered marginal. Along with research focus on the tribes, Indian anthropologist also emphasised on researching Indian society prior to Indian Independence in 1947, since independence many anthropologists conducted research throughout the country. The first Indian national to research and document on the tribes was Sri Sarat Chandra Roy who was described by Hutton as ‘Father of Indian Ethnology’. Sri Roy worked along with other British anthropologists and produced monographs on some major tribals of Chotanagarpur. Roy conducted field expeditions, writing books and articles and training researchers for anthropological research on tribal and rural cultures. The most sought-after study for anthropologist to study about India were “scheduled tribes”, the cast systems, Adivasi”, and “backward Hindus”. The role of caste in politics, voting behaviors, rural leadership, and research on kinship, marriage and family were also researched in the past.

It was not, in fact, until the 1950s that the discipline adapted its field techniques and theories to the study of a “civilization” such as India. The “culture area” concept allowed for the reduction of the subcontinent into smaller territorial and often homogeneous social units, but it was the Indian village that, in the end, became the center of anthropological analysis for at least a generation. ‘Anthropology in India started its carrier in 1774 when Sir William Jones, the founder-president of the Asiatic Society of Bengal defined the scope of its inquiries as comprising the entire field of studies concerned with ‘man and nature’. British administrators, Christian missionaries and other anthropologists who are posted in different parts of the country studied and collected data on the lives of the rural people and tribes and documented it in the Journal of Asiatic Society of Bengal, Indian Antiquity, and Journal of Bihar and Orissa Research Society (1915), and Man in India. The growth of Indian anthropology has been divided into different periods. Sarat Chandra Roy classified the growth of anthropology in India in terms of the sources of publications such as magazines, handbooks and monograms. And, in terms of the nationality of the authors. According to S.C. Dube, this growth was classified in three phases: i. Compilation and publication of volumes on tribes and castes, ii. Detailed monographic studies of individual tribes mostly based upon personal observation and iii. Quantitative advancement and qualitative achievement. Nirmal Kumar Bose divided the growth of anthropology in India into three phases: i. Encyclopedia of tribes and castes, ii. Descriptive monographs and iii. Analytical studies of village, marriage and family, caste and civilization. Dhirendra Nath Majumdar divided the growth of anthropological research in India into three historical periods:

1. Formulation phase (1774-1911),
2. Constructive phase (1912-1937),
3. Critical phase (1938-to present day).

Despite much anthropological research on education in India, the importance of educational anthropology is not properly acknowledged. Sociologists have paid little attention on studying schools as an agenda for their research and this shows as to how there exists a lack of interest among the Indian sociologists in the field of sociology of education. Constructive period of the Indian anthropology started with the inclusion of Anthropology which was built into school and university curriculum by two important Universities. University of Bombay (as a part of Sociology in 1919) and University of Calcutta (in 1920) attracted academicians and trained scholars to undertake significant research. Several Indian anthropologists like P.N. Mishra, Lakshminarayanapuram Ananthakrishna Krishna Iyer, Kshitis Prasad Chattopadhya, Tarak Chandra Das, Dhirendra Nath Majumdar in the Eastern and Northern India, and G.S. Ghurye, Irawati Karve, Anantha Krishna Iyer and A. Aiyappan provided the initial simulation to anthropological research by publishing several books, conducting field expeditions on tribal and rural cultures in India.

Conducting educational anthropological research can help the Indian education system to support sustainable, people-centric educational policies, curriculum construction, and above all better-focused teacher training. A responsible approach would include local forms of knowledge, experience and values. With the influx of globalization and privatization, education researchers are motivated to consider various socio-cultural dimensions to research through which action-based programs and tribal upliftment are constituted. Early education-related anthropology, with fieldwork as an integral part, mainly aimed to further theoretical understandings, rather than improving teaching/learning processes or shaping educational policy. Literature that addresses and brings awareness to the basic constitutional rights suffered by female population in India, at the same time there are obstacles which prevented the Indian tribal population to basic or better education. Standard and fixed curriculum policies on textbooks at the school level continues, allowing little or no scope for teachers’ autonomy in modifying the curriculum. Teachers are mere instruments of teaching mainstream knowledge and preaching dominant values. Emphasizing on culture-sensitive and allowing teacher the flexibility to make changes to the curriculum and daily lesson plans would give teachers rights to choose materials for teaching and daily curriculum construction. Better teacher training is required to strengthen teachers’ skills in cultural contextualization of the curriculum, with two components, identifying local ‘funds of knowledge’ and integrating them meaningfully into formal instruction processes. Connections to formal and informal learning would make teaching and learning process would bring meaning to the children’s learning process.

Indian Anthropology has come a long way and still needs to move forward to make administrators and policymakers feel the need of the relevance of anthropological research. There are tribal communities in different states and tribal school that still needs focus and research expeditions from anthropologist. The tribal schools are “culture-sensitive, educating young learners about themselves and their relationship to the nation, can become a useful tool of nation building in India. This emphasis on connectedness, without erasing local and tribal differences and identities in favor of some majoritarian nationalist ideal, remains an important core element of India’s unity in diversity.” Indian Anthropology should focus on newer issues and problems being faced by this developing country and provide solutions. In addition to tribal school research focuses, Indian society today also needs research emphasis on problems like poverty, hunger, illiteracy, lack of health care, crime against women, etc., which are usually handled mainly by activist and NGO organizations, journalists and the police. It is such a shame on our part as a nation to leave our own issues and problems into the hands of the western intellectuals when there are highly qualified researcher and anthropologist at reputed universities in India who can throw some light on these issues in order to bring awareness which may lead to possible solutions to the problem. “…the whole issue of the Bhopal gas leak tragedy (1984) escaped the academic notice of Indian anthropologists while their western counterparts produced theses, books and articles on this issue. ….in the late 1970s when historian Bipan Chandra went to Assam for a month in 1979 to study the ongoing movement on foreigners’ issue and upon return to town gave a lecture on his ethnohistorical findings. Has any sociologist done this sort of work after the Bhopal incident?”.

Further research and focus on educational anthropology as a tool for promoting transformative education will further strengthen a diversity-sensitive and cultureconscious educational system which is the strength and ambition of the Indian nation. The key is to restructure and practice effective teacher education. Teachers and preservice teachers need to practice and include responsible forms of interaction between all students and community members on the basis of broadly shared value system as humans and as Indian citizens. To fulfill this responsibility, research anthropologist and better trained teachers are core requirements.

When we are speaking of whether a country is well developed or not, Human Development Index (HDI) is always be mentioned while Human Poverty Index (HPI) rarely appears in papers. As a matter of fact, this two indexes should be measured together but not separately. Usually, countries with relatively higher poverty level tend to have lower values in HDI, yet the average values in HDI is not sufficiently enough to reveal the actual condition of the poor class hence HPI comes up with this consideration, which is not a commonly used index. Thus, the ideal outcome should be high HDI and low HPI. Added to above, one thing that has drawn world concern is myriads of high HDI countries (affluent city) has resulted in high HPI as well which the poverty scale is not been narrowed but the rich get wealthier. As well as taking HPI into account, Amartya Sen (1992) suggested that poverty should be measured by capability approach but not just income lowness, this approach has been applied into economics concept with add and modified the index that published in UNESCO such as Gender related development index (GDI). And therefore, in the following, this essay is aimed at doing a discussion on the difficulties of anti-poverty and it is divided into two main parts which are the challenges of anti-poverty that are facing by worldwide and Hong Kong respectively by using capability approach.

Sens (1992) recommended that poverty should also be measured with capability rather than simply income lowness. He emphasises on capability and functionings while capability set is determined by 3 types of conversion factors which are personal, social and environmental. Capability set provided a range of choice for people to achieve. A framework is shown below:

With reference to the data in World Bank by 2015, international poverty line (IPL) is updated to USD $1.9 a day and replaced the data of USD $1.25 per day figure as of 2005. People earn under $1.25 a day can be determined to be absolute poverty. Base on the most recent data, it is estimated that there are 10.7% of people in world are living under international poverty threshold which means about 767 million people are still suffering from extreme poverty. Thought the world poverty rate is significantly reducing in all region, the progress has been uneven. There is a 25% in decline of absolute poverty while this huge drop is remarkably due to China and Indonesia – the poverty rate of China largely fell from 85% to 15.9% during 2005 to 2015, more than 600 million mainlanders has gotten rid of poverty and Indonesia has deducted 37 million poor – notwithstanding, without the contribution of China, poverty rate dropped only by about 10% which shown that the situation is not satisfy improved. 96% of poor that live under International Poverty Line focus in Sub-Saharan Africa (Poverty Around The World — Global Issues, 2016). The number of poor has solely fell by 4 million while there are 389 million people living in poverty and it is even more than all other countries combined. Furthermore, people who live in poor context and rural area are always the vast majority of global poor, who are not well educated and usually work in agriculture sectors (Wong, n.d.). Education, healthcare, safety, etc. are still remaining elusive for them. The progress of people to lift out of poverty is often provisional, their hard-won gains are threatened by many aspects such as economic shocks, food insecurity and climate change which push them back into poverty again.

In order to tackle poverty, as a first step, capability failure should be embarked and reduced. Sen (1992) proposed that all poverty problems mentioned above are caused by capability failure instead of just income lowness. Since there are 3 factors that affect capability set, capability failure can also be divided into 3 main reasons which are personal, social and environmental (Nambiar, 2010).

In terms of personal conversion factors, it is actually a congenital component that hard to change such as physical condition and intelligence. People can strengthen their ability if they wish to enrich their capability set.

For those developed/high HDI country, problems are usually induced by social conversion factor. Developed country is able to provide better environmental conversion factors for its citizens but some social conversion factors have hindered their achievements. Public policy usually is the main reason that induces capability failure. For example, gender inequality is a common issue in India which the patriarchal society tend to offer men job opportunity but not for women. Hence capability set of India women is smaller than India men. Women have to work harder to reach the same functionings with man.

For those people in third world country, their capability failure is mostly caused by environmental conversion factors. These country is not able to provide basic needs for citizens such as clean water and food, not to mention hygiene and education. Tons of people who is living in slum have to worry about their survival and living standard. The capability set provided by these countries would not be as large as developed country did. For instance, multitudes of Africa citizens do not have a job, do not have food and suffering from hunger, disaster, disease, etc., their capability set is relatively smaller than other countries can provide which induced other social and personal conversion factors as well, hence people are in the poverty cycle that cannot escape from it.

According to the Hong Kong poverty report in 2015, it is shown that there are 1.34 million of HK people live under poverty line, which means there are 20000 more people live under the poverty threshold from 2014. This is the highest number since 2009. The poverty rate is raised from 19.6% to 19.7% (Fosu, 2016). HK is also well-known that having a high Gini Index. On top of it, working poor becomes more widespread. As of 2015, there are 182000 working poor families in HK, the total number of people living in these household has reached 622300. There are 0.53 million of females living under poverty which is about 14.9% and this percentage is much higher than the males (黃碩紅, 2016). Many people cannot afford a house rent in HK and not to mention to buy a flat. Thought HK government has provided subsidies to people in need but not much of them is approved.

The most evident capability failure of Hong Kong would be public policy inequality which has narrowed the capability set of capable persons. Imagine a situation that there are Citizen A and B who is beyond and under the poverty line respectively by income but the result is in contrast when we measure them by capability, due to subsidies and expenses which is kind of social conversion factors.

Regarding to above official poverty measurement (OPM), it is obvious that citizen A has tried hard to reduce the gap between capability and functionings. Meanwhile, citizen B can live beyond the poverty line since there are subsidies. And hence, poverty problem in HK is just getting much more serious as government do not have any all-round solutions to deal with the “middle class” – those cannot gain any subsidy from government but earn not much enough for living. Then this kind of economic inequality derives its sub-units such as gender inequality and health inequality. Hence the capability cannot be enriched for HK citizens to choose to achieve. Policy should be revised in a bid to solve poverty problems and combat people who squander public money. All revised policy should also in transparency in order to draw public awareness.

HK did much better in environmental aspect for enlarging people’s capability, nevertheless, the main problem of housing has not been coped for two decades. Safety and stable living environment are basic needs of human with regards to Maslow’s theory while HK government cannot satisfy citizens needs in properties. The property price keep on increasing that 80% of HK citizens cannot afford it (Fosu, 2016). Public housing is in craving but the government neglected the concern of people. When people do not feel safe and find difficulty to have a home in HK, the capability set is lessened which has disappointed the public. The government should tackle it brooks no delay in order to widen HKers capability set so as to reach more functionings for solving poverty issue. It is no wonder that build more public housing is one of the way, but there should be more regulations on property speculation.

Thought setbacks of anti-poverty are challenging, the larger capability set people have, the choicer people can choose for their worthy life. In long term, the higher economic growth. Economic activity should be human oriented instead of money oriented. Human is the largest asset to bring along business activity and education is always the best way to tackle to poverty problems. Country should not only concentrate on increasing GDP, as growth in GDP does not mean to have growth in quality. Policy establishment need to emphasis on freedom and ability extension. Myriads of not mentioned inequalities such as rural and urban are inequality should be tackled as soon as possible. Economic structure, political structure and culture are also some other elements that influence capability set as external factor. By increasing people literacy rate, health status and freedom for enhancing people’s quality of life, the outcome of their contribution is much more fruitful.

Human well-being is the identification and recognition that everyone and anyone in this world should have regardless of their gender, culture, age, the environment they are living in, or religion. It is measured based on facts and data that has been collected throughout people’s lives. Human Development Index (HDI) is data that has been collected in large quantities and determines worldwide ranking or a certain number of countries based on life expectancy, education, and per capita income indicators. It is useful because it measures the success and achievements that have occurred and compare the results to other countries that are included and rank them based on the three factors that were listed previously. The two countries that will be discussed are China and Australia.

China is finding difficulties financially because of the debt that has to be paid back to the US which was $19.4 trillion. While paying back the debt China will not be financially stable. China only gets $15.270 gross national income per capita. However, Australia gets $43.560 gross national income per capita. One of the similarities of China and Australia is that there is a significant level of natural resources available, but the result will not be the same because China is overpopulated and Australia is underpopulated which makes it harder to provide everyone what they need in China. Australia does not have any debt to pay back which makes it convenient for the population. The Australian government uses the money to invest in things such as social security, welfare, or funding for aged care services.

The Australian government would be capable of doing these things because people work and pay taxes and the tax goes towards these things and the individual’s superannuation. China only provides 13.8 years of schooling which makes it difficult to run the country because not many people are educated enough to know what’s wrong and what’s right. However, Australia provides 22.9 years of schooling. Australia can supply the population with education which it is helpful for society and each individual. When there is more education it means more employment and where there’s employment it means that the society and the country as a whole will become developed and financially stable. When the level of human well-being is high in a country, there is a high possibility that its population will live longer and that will cause the life expectancy to increase over time. The approximate life expectancy in China is 76.4 years. However, in Australia, the life expectancy is 83.1 years.

China has a lower life expectancy due to a lack of health services, efficient machinery to figure out or cure diseases, and also not having enough money to provide the needs for good health services, and low levels of education. Australia has a higher life expectancy due to the good health services provided, efficient machinery, educated and qualified doctors, and other people that work in the medical field. One of the management strategies was the president of China Xi Jinping has put health in priority for improving China’s human well-being. He put through a policy where there is a great allowance of machinery just for improving the population’s health. China held a National Health conference regarding the policy and the machinery which was the most significant national meeting on health in twenty years. The other management strategy occurred in the 1940s. China had 69 cities, but in 2007 it had 670. Towns were included within the 670 cities, which illustrates that the Chinese population migrated from villages to small towns which led to an expansion of cities that allowed urbanization to occur. Urbanization includes infrastructure, factories working in non-polluting machinery and procedures, and increased employment.

The Australian population are able to visit doctors and access medical facilities at any time and do not have to pay. There is something called medicare, which means that the government takes the money from the taxes and uses them to provide people with free health services. For the people that are unable to work and have disabilities, the government provides them with payments, do they do not rely on anyone and the money is helpful if they do not have anyone. In conclusion, Australia has a very high standard of living since its ranked 3rd out of 189 countries in the Human Development Index. However, China is ranked 86th out of 189 countries. This shows that China is one of the countries that are towards the bottom of the list but are improving over time. The Human Development Index is very helpful to today’s modern society because it directly shows the quality of living in certain countries. Once again the three factors that the Human Development Index is measured in are life expectancy at birth, expected years of schooling, and gross national income (GIN) per capita. Overall, Human well-being is improving worldwide and it will keep improving.

Some say that entrepreneurship is getting more incorporated into the countries’ economies, yet it is considered crucial for economic development. It is worth emphasizing at an early stage, that “Private” in private equity shows no relation to the secretion, but in fact, private equity defined by John Gilligan and Mike Wright in their book “Private Equity demystified, an explanatory guide” is the sum of all capitals put at risk of loss in a transaction and that, as a financial package, has a share in any capital gain earned. It is important to underline that a private equity fund represents a type of investment, in which institutional investors like banks, individuals with elevated net worth, firms’ managers, pension funds, investment funds, and insurance companies are the principal investors. The main target of a private equity fund is to study the portfolio of a private company and therefore invest risk capital in it. In other terms, private equity firms would like to make a profit via the generation of capital gain, and in order to generate them, those companies would put all of their efforts into the increase of shareholder value.

Whilst reading the title of this paper, the definition of emerging market arises, but prior to this definition, it is crucial to understand the meaning of the Human Development Index (HDI) and its direct relation with the characterization of emerging markets.

According to Niels Lind in his article entitled “Values Reflected in the Human Development Index”, a country is compared amongst others based on their respective population development. The Human Development Index together with the Gross National Index (GNI), is used to classify a country into three distinct categories; high-income countries (developed), emerging economies, and low-income countries. Furthermore, the Human Development Index is based on three different important factors; firstly, longevity, which is the expected life of a person at birth, secondly the education of a human, which is attained by measuring adult literacy ( combination of the gross primary, secondary and tertiary enrolment ratio), and finally the standard living of a person in the country of interest, which is identified by the real gross domestic product per one capita.

Far from this summary, this paper will emphasize the pitfalls of a private equity firm in the emerging markets, more specifically in the poorest countries of the MENA.

Specifically, an emerging market country is a country that has some characteristics of a developed country but lacks its standards. Experts in the Journals of Business Research shed the light on the importance of these emerging markets, therefore, they stressed the point that those markets help the economy to grow. This statement was based on a study that they did while taking 3808 firms as a sample and therefore stated that “ international firms tend to have higher performance, while businesses with intangible resources have a poor performance.

Most important dimensions of development

The most familiar dimensions of development are Economic Development, Social Development, Political development, and Environmental Development. But according to me, the most important ones are Economic Development and Social Development.

Economic Development

Economic growth is a subset of economic development. In simplest terms, economic growth refers to an increase in aggregate production in an economy (1). Generally, economic growth is thought about as the results of various functions like physical capital, labor capital, and human capital. The more the number of labor forces and raw materials, the more would be the number of goods produced, thereby increasing the economic output. It is conventionally measured as the percent rate of increase in real gross domestic product, or real GDP (2). Economic growth can also be thought about as an increase in the production of goods and services in a specific country. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is an indicator of a country’s economic growth. However, GDP tends to measure only the developmental aspect such as the financial gain or the income of people but does not encompass the black market or individuals receiving their incomes from family labor or prohibited activities.

Social Development

Social Development is mainly concerned with raising the well-being of each and every individual in a society so that they are able to reach their full capability. Therefore, Social Development is closely connected with Human Development. Social Development means uplifting the people and improving their standard of living and quality of life. Human Development can be outlined as the enlargement of people’s section in a way that they are able to live healthier, longer, and fuller lives. Therefore, this dimension, Human Development, so implies at achieving economic development through enhancements in various fields such as education, healthcare, the standard of living, happiness, and numerous different aspects of human welfare or well-being. According to Ranis et al. (2000), human development and economic growth reinforce each other (3). Proof gathered unconcealed that human development needs sequencing priority when viewing at human development and economic progress. It is therefore viewed that human development stands out to be multi-dimensional because it includes per capita income (GDP), life expectance, and education.

proof gathered unconcealed that human development needs sequencing priority once watching the linkage between human development and economic process. Adequate human capital sustains the economic process. it’s so viewed that human development stands bent on be multi-dimensional as a result of it includes per capita financial gain (GDP), life expectance, and education. The criticism that arises for the human development dimension is that it doesn’t appear to handle the matter issue of difference discrimination. According to UNDP (1990, p. 10), however, the human development multi-dimensional approach preferably addresses a more comprehensive development measure by considering three essential choices of people namely, to lead a long and healthy life, to acquire knowledge, and to have resources that enable a good standard of living.(4)

it’s instructed that it’d be a lot of informative if different aspects were incorporated for every one of the 3 elements thought of within the human development index (Sagar & Najam, 1997, p. 263). Secondly, it doesn’t appear to live changes in indicators that area unit long run in nature (such as those of life expectance). in line with UNDP (1990, p. 10), however, the human development multi-dimensional approach ideally addresses a lot of comprehensive development live by considering 3 essential selections of individuals specifically, to guide an extended and healthy life, to accumulate data, and to own resources that change a decent customary of living.

Most important indicators

According to me the most two important indicators of economic development from the mentioned table are:

• a. Gender Inequality Index (GII)
• b. Human Development Index (HDI)

Gender Inequality Index (GII)

Gender Equality remains a serious barrier to human development. Women and girls have created major strides since 1990, however, they have not acquired gender equity. The Gender Difference Index, which addresses the key criticisms of previous measures, is exclusive of crucial problems with academic attainment, economic and political participation, and generative health problems and in accounting for overlapping inequalities at the national level. As such, it represents a very important advance on existing international measures of gender equity. Measures of the disadvantages for females raise awareness of issues, allowing the observation of progress towards gender equity objectives. The Gender Inequality Index is intended to reveal the extent to which the conclusion of a country’s human development potential is curtailed by gender difference, and provides empirical foundations for policy analysis and support efforts. Gender Inequality Index (GII) is a metric introduced by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2010 that shows the proportion of potential human development loss because of gender discrimination and ranges from zero representing “no lost opportunity” to one representing complete opportunity loss. The index was developed to mask the defect of two already developed indices: Gender Development Index (GDI) and Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM), each of which was developed in 1995. Gender Inequality Index (GII) encompasses three dimensions that are: generative health, empowerment, and labor market inclusion.

Human Development Index (HDI)

With respect to the above-mentioned indicators, the Human Development Index (HDI) also seems to be the foremost and most helpful indicator in characterizing the chosen dimensions. According to Sen (1984, p. 513-515), development is a process by which the freedoms that people enjoy are expanded. These freedoms involve access to basic human needs (such as food and shelter), people’s well-being, and social-economic growth (6). Development is thus perceived as more than just economic progress or economic growth. The human development index is thus chosen as the most helpful indicator in this case as it incorporates a relatively more comprehensive coverage of aspects of development in relevance to Sen’s (1984) definition of development. According to the Human Development Report (2016), the HDI is “a summary measure of achievements in three key dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge, and a decent standard of living” (7). it’s accepted that to attain long and healthy life, access to expertise, and a good measure of living, there must be the proper infrastructure for health facilities, education facilities, and employment opportunities reciprocally. This advocates a link between economic progress through industrialization and human development.

Analysis of lower-income country – Nepal

The human development index for Nepal is observed to fall under the medium category among the other countries globally. The table below shows some changes that have occurred in the HDI between 1990 – 2017.

• Table 1. Table of HDI by country source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/composite/HDI
• Figure 1. Showing trend in HDI for Nepal from 1990 to 2018 Source: http://hdr.undp.org/
• Table 2. Nepal’s HDI trends are based on consistent time series data and new goalposts source http://hdr.undp.org/
• Figure 2. Nepal’s GDP Per Capita growth (Annual %) Source: https://data.worldbank.org/
• Table 3. Life Expectancy in Nepal source: http://hdr.undp.org/
• Table 4. GNI per capita (PPP $) for Nepal Source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/indicators/141706

Nepal’s HDI value for 2017 was 0.574 due to which the country falls under the medium human development grade, standing at the 149th position out of 189 counties and territories around the globe. Between the years 1990 and 2017 Nepal’s HDI value expanded from 0.378 to 0.574, with an overall increase of 51.9 percent. Also, between the mentioned two years, 1990 and 2017, Nepal’s life expectancy at birth showed an increase of 16.3 years, and the average years of schooling showed an increase of 2.9. Nepal’s GNI per capita increased by about 111.6 percent between 1990 and 2017. Since the year 1990 to 2017, there has been a consistent increase in the life expectancy figures for Nepal.

• Figure 3. Index Comparison source: http://hdr.undp.org/

Comparing the progress of other countries

According to World Bank Data, Nepal falls under the category of South Asia with other countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India Maldives, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka (9). The human development progress, as measured by the HDI, can usefully be compared to other countries. For instance, during the years between 1990 and 2017 Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan experienced completely different degrees of progress toward increasing their HDI as in figure 4.

• Figure 4. HDI trends for Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, 1990-2017. source: http://hdr.undp.org/sites/all/themes/hdr_theme/country-notes/NPL.pdf

Nepal’s 2017 HDI of 0.574 is below the average of 0.645 for countries in the medium human development group and below the average of 0.638 for countries in South Asia. From South Asia, countries that are close to Nepal in 2017 HDI rank and to some extent in population size are Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, which have HDIs ranked 168 and 76 respectively as shown in the below table.

• Table 3. Nepal’s HDI and component indicators for 2017 relative to selected countries and groups source: http://hdr.undp.org/sites/all/themes/hdr_theme/country-notes/NPL.pdf

Nepal’s HDI for 2017 was 0.574. However, when the rate is modified for inequality, the HDI falls to 0.427, a loss of 25.6 percent thanks to the difference within the distribution of the HDI dimension indices. Afghanistan and Sri Lanka show losses due to inequality of 29.6 percent and 13.8 percent respectively. The average loss due to inequality for medium HDI countries is 25.1 percent and for South Asia, it is 26.1 percent. The Human inequality coefficient for Nepal is equal to 24.6 percent.

An increase in the gross domestic product per capita (income) results from industry manufacturing that brings about additional merchandise and services in addition to employment opportunities from which individuals will have a supply of livelihood. It is also conjointly acknowledged that in the circumstances of consuming the resources to yield goods and services, the concepts of diminishing returns and marginal product on employment comes into the picture. The HDI graph in figure 1 appears to reverberate these notions. Life expectance in, table 3, is seen to have a regular boost although at various rates, after the GDP per capita picked up. This ends up in population increase thanks to doable reduced mortality. In relevance to the two-sector models, a population increase tends to cause a potential increase in labor quantity provided that there are restricted resources. The resulting increase in labor resources eventually leads to unemployment in the given country rendering the population to reduced incomes therefore eventually creating challenging situations for them to access their basic needs to maintain their health. The HDI as a behavior of life expectancy at birth (life expectancy index), information (education index), and standard of living (GNI index) shows a trend characteristic of the two-sector models of development. It’s however conjointly argued that a general expansion in the financial gain doesn’t essentially account for the development however thought on the equality of distribution of such financial gains does. The human development index, in this case, doesn’t contemplate equality or discrimination in the financial gain distribution and therefore the hidden details of such data might possibly be also committing to the visible changes in life expectance and overall HDI.

References:

1. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/economicgrowth.asp
2. Statistics on the Growth of the Global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 2003 to 2013, IMF, October 2012.
3. Ranis, G., Stewart, F. & Ramirez, A. (2000). Economic Growth and Human Development. World Development, 28(2), 197-219. Retrieved from https://ac-els-cdn-com.ezproxy.lincoln.ac.nz/S0305750X9900131X/1-s2.0-S0305750X9900131X-main.pdf?_tid=d9bba762-d240-11e7-8ada-00000aacb362&acdnat=1511656343_3737b4f23e5998c90ad33339a06de2ec
4. UNDP. (1990). Human Development Report 1990. New York. The USA. Retrieved from http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/219/hdr_1990_en_complete_nostats.pdf
5. Amie Gaye & Jeni Klugman & Milorad Kovacevic & Sarah Twigg & Eduardo Zambrano, 2010.’Measuring Key Disparities in Human Development: The Gender Inequality Index, ‘Human Development Research Papers (2009 to present) HDRP-2010-46, Human Development Report Office (HDRO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
6. Sen, A. (1984). Development as a Freedom. New York: USA
7. UNDP. (2016). Human Development Report 2016. Human Development for Everyone. New York. The USA. Retrieved from http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/2016_human_development_report.pdf
8. http://hdr.undp.org/sites/all/themes/hdr_theme/country-notes/NPL.pdf
9. https://data.worldbank.org/region/south-asia?view=chart

Appendix

1. source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/gender-inequality-index-gii
2. source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/human-development-index-hdi
3. source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/2018-update
4. source: http://hdr.undp.org/
5. source: http://hdr.undp.org/

Australia, Developed or not?

Australia is a developing country due to its economy, its citizens’ lifestyles and its ratings in the human development index.

In 2017 Australia exported 243 billion dollars in goods, to China, Japan, South Korea, India, Hong Kong and More(1). Australia also imported 199 billion dollars in goods from the United States of America, China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea and more(1). Making their trading balance 44 billion dollars (1). If the commonwealth of Australia was not sustainable enough to support themselves, why would they trade 243 billion dollars in goods that could be used to support themselves, why would they be giving away more than they are requiring, all of these things prove they are developed more than enough to support themselves but to help others develop as well. As of 2017 Australia also has a gross domestic product of 1,126,000,000,000 and a gross national product of 1,323,000,000,000 (2) an astonishing 300 times Sierra Leone’s gross domestic product of 3,774,000,000 and 100 times Sierra Leone’s gross national product of 11,200,000,000 (2) The commonwealth of Australia dates back to 1901 when the 6 colonies of Australia past legislation to separate from the British rule,(3) as they no longer needed help from the British to sustain themselves if they did why would they sovereign from the British army, economy, resources and more. These high economic standards all contribute to the Australian citizen’s ways of life.

98.8% of the urban population of Australia has access to drinking water(5) and 100% of the population has access to electricity(9), if almost the whole population has access to drinkable water and electricity, where in countries such as South Sudan, only 5.1% of the population has electricity(10), how can Australia not be developed. Considering that 98.8% of urban Australians had access to clean water, not as many deaths would be caused by waterborne diseases and less overall deaths, Australia has a death rate of 464/day (6)with the leading causes of death being Coronary heart disease, Alzheimer’s/Dementia, Stroke, Lung cancer, Prostate cancer, Breast cancer, Colon-rectum cancer, Diabetes mellitus and suicide. (7) Cancer, diabetes, strokes and Alzheimer’s/dementia are genetic diseases caused by DNA mutations, (11) (12)(13) most in which are caused by the environment and Australia’s conditions, other than suicide. (11) The birth rate in Australia ranks at 1,030/ day (6) and only 4.2/1,000 infants die (7). Similar to health care here in Canada, Australian health care is free (14) This may be the reason in which birth and death rates are so good or the fact that life expectancy rates are as high as 82.9 years, ranking Australia 6th among all countries of the world. With such long, quality lives Australians have lots of time to study and educate themselves, to be exact Australian students have an estimated 23 years of education (9) Resulting in a 99% literacy rate among the population (7) and 80% of citizens aged 25 to 64 have completed post-secondary education. High-quality lifestyle, health care, and education all factor into the human development index.

The human development index breaks down and ranks countries in several categories. One in witch is Poverty, All subcategories in Australia’s poverty category are rated as “n.a”(9), the human development index also lists n.a under the child labour subcategory, this could possibly be because Australia has no poverty and no child labour. Employment rates in Australia are so great that there unemployment rate within the labour force of 5.7% is almost 20% higher than Mozambique’s unemployment rate of 25%. With the labour force growing the Australian government inputted a carbon pricing mechanism to reduce carbon emissions. (15) However carbon emissions in Australia have reached 15.4 tonnes per capita(9), resulting in a household air pollution mortality rate of 8.4/per 100,000(9). As mentioned earlier 98.8% of the Australian population has access to drinking water this aids the 0.1/per 100,000 people mortality due to water quality rate. (9) Another subcategory revolving around the development of Australia includes human security, under the human security subject the human development index states that 151/100,000 people are inhabited in prisons(9). However considering when the British explorers inhabited Australia permanently for the first time, 11 vessels were sent over containing approximately 730 convicts and about 250 innocent civilians, meaning that almost 75% of the population was criminals. (3) Taking into account that today only 1% of the Australian population are prisoners and it used to be 75%, Australia’s government and society has developed to the point where citizens follow rules provided by the parliament and the parliament is able to contain is citizens actions. Australia also has a homicide rate of 0.9/per 100,000 (9)people which is also proof that Australia has developed a lot scene the settlement of the British. Lastly, the Australian male suicide rates of 15.3/100,000 are 3 times the Australian female suicide rates of 5.6/100,000(9).

Unemployment Rate: the unemployment rate is defined as the percentage of individuals that are not willing or are not able to participate in paid work for a variety of reasons. This is calculated using a method where the number of unemployed individuals is divided by the number of people in the labor force. This percentage is used to compare the levels of employment in different countries to calculate living standards.

GDP: The GDP is known as the Gross Domestic Product and is a measurement regarding a country’s market value. It is the total amount of goods created and services provided in a certain time period but is usually calculated annually. The GDP is measured using a variety of components related to a specific country. These components may include Government spending, Consumption expenditure, and Business Investment. Imports and Exports also contribute to GDP as Imports lower the value and Exports improve and increase the value of a country’s Gross Domestic Product. Inflation Rate: The inflation rate is defined as the rate by which prices at a general level rise or devaluate over a yearly period in an economy. The inflation rate can be measured in many different ways but is most commonly tracked through the Consumer Price Index. This index measures the dramatic changes in the prices of certain goods or services over a variety of different areas of consumption.

Human Development Index: the Human Development Index (HDI) is a tool used to measure the living standards of a particular country or area based on their development and economic growth. A country’s HDI can be measured using a variety of different statistics such as; Life expectancy, Inflation rate, and Gross domestic product. HDI doesn’t include statistics involving poverty or inequalities of a country but is used for an overview of a country’s development.

Data Collection and Analysis

Australia: Trends in Australia’s GDP over the past 10 years

According to The Trading Economies website, Australia’s Gross Domestic Product has changed significantly over the past ten years in many ways as well as reaching new national records in overall GDP. Australia’s GDP contributes 2.31 percent to the world’s overall economy and is ranked the 14th highest country is related to market value. Australia reached an all-time high in GDP in 2013 when it increased to over 1.5 trillion USD. Australia averaged an annual increase of 3.3% in GDP recorded from 1960 to the present date. Australia’s overall GDP since 2009 has recorded many periods of fluctuation, especially towards the end of 2012 and the start of 2016 with a significant decrease of 366.2 Billion USD. This dramatic drop in GDP was mainly influenced by the cuts in spending by consumers, businesses, and the government. This nearly leads to the first technical recession in Australia since the early 1990s. Although since 2016, Australia’s Gross Domestic Product has been slowly increasing back to a stable rate. In January 2019 Australia experienced its weakest growth rate of 1.8% since the Global Financial Crisis that occurred in 2008. This was a result of the drop in many major contributors to GDP such as; Retail sales which dropped -by 0.1%, construction work which dropped -by 1.9%, and business investments which dropped -by 1.7%.

Germany: Trends in Germany’s GDP over the past 10 years

According to the Trading Economies website, Germany’s GDP has also changed rapidly in the last 10 years. Germany’s GDP value calculates to represent 6.45 percent of the total world economy and ranks them the 14th highest country in relation to market value. Germany recorded it highest GDP very recently in 2018 with a value of 3996.76 Billion USD. Germany’s average GDP growth rate is 2% when calculated from 1971 to 2019. This percentage dropped to a record low from previous years when it plummeted -6.8% in 2009. This enormous decrease in GDP was the result of Germany’s worst recession since the Second World War. Germany who is a country dependent on exports was deeply affected by the collapse of the large investment company Lehman Brothers in late 2008. This collapse caused Germany’s unemployment rate in 2009 increased and an extra 155,000 more people than the previous year were left without jobs. Germany’s economy is on the rise after a surge in household spending, a significant rise in export, and a pick-up in construction activity. This is great for Germany as they were able to recover from the huge drop in GDP that occurred in 2015.

Australia:

The unemployment Rate in Australia was calculated at 5.2% in June 2019. This places Australia far behind in regards to the unemployment rate as our numbers are significantly greater than countries such as the United States of America or the United Kingdom. In June the number of unemployed individuals increased by 6,600 people as overall employment only rose by 500. Australia’s unemployment is rate could be described as a high to moderate percentage, but for a country with such high living standards, these percentages are not up to par and should be significantly reduced.

The inflation Rate in Australia rose to 1.6% in June of 2019. This sudden lift from previous months was due to an increase in prices in food and petrol showed its highest rise since September 2014, As well as minor increases in housing, clothing, medical and travel. The inflation rate was predicted to be much lower and was a shock to the economy when the prices skyrocketed. Australia has a moderately low inflation rate which is good as it encourages consumers to purchase goods and services. A low inflation rate indicates that an economy is stable and in a good economic state.

Australia’s Human Development Index is 0.939 which ranks it 3rd in the world in regard to living standards. This is a very high ranking and is because of many factors that contribute to good living standards. Australia’s life expectancy is 83.1, its expected years of schooling is 22.9 and its Gross National Income per capita is valued at $43,560 USD. These factors are all high above the average statistics which places Australia as a very developed country in terms of living standards.

Germany:

The unemployment rate in Germany was recorded at 3.1% in June 2019. This places Germany in a great position in regards to the unemployment rate as only a small portion of their population is unwilling or unable to work. Their percentage is much lower than in countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Unemployment in Germany dropped 1.5% whilst the employment rate grew by 0.1%. This is the lowest that Germany’s Unemployment rate has been since their reunification in 1990, and this value will continue to diminish if Germany increases the amounts of jobs in their economy.

The inflation rate in Germany was calculated at 1.7% in July 2019 which was a rise from previous months and higher than the expected rate. This rate is lower than Germany’s average inflation rate from 1950 to 2019 which was 2.37%, but these rates are predicted to increase as the prices of necessities such as food and electricity are expected to rise by over 2% each. Germany has a moderately low inflation rate which is good as it encourages consumers to purchase goods and services.

Germany’s Human Development Index is 0.936 which ranks it 5th in the world in regard to living standards. This is a high ranking as it places them high above many other economically advanced countries. Germany’s life expectancy is 81.2, Expected years of schooling are 17, and Gross National Income per capita is valued at $46,136 USD. These statistics are all high above the average value for each of their criteria and are the reason why Germany is ranked highly on the Human Development Index.

Spatial Inequality

Australia:

Internal Factors:

Population Growth – Australia’s annual population growth is 1.6% which is much higher than countries such as the United States of America and Canada. This growth in population causes a demand for more resources such as education, healthcare, infrastructure, and basic necessities to satisfy the needs of Australia’s growing amounts of people. Australia’s large population growth is also a barrier for development.

Environmental degradation – Since the European settlement in 1788, 13% of Australia’s original vegetation has been destroyed or removed because of clearing activities for agricultural land. Overgrazing has been the main contributor to the depletion of Australia’s vegetation.

External Factors: N/A

1. Does everyone in Australia enjoy a high level of well-being?

Overall Australia ranks very highly in relation to its people’s well-being. It is above average in areas such as income, wealth, housing, education, and personal security as well as many others. According to the OECD Better Life Index, 81% of adults aged 21-64 had completed upper secondary education, and 73% of people aged 15-64 have a paid job. These statistics are important as these factors are vital for a country and its people to have high levels of well-being.

Germany:

Internal Factors:

Population Growth – Germany has a very low annual population growth percentage of only 0.4% which is much lower than countries such as Australia and the United States. This means that Germany doesn’t have to change the amount that it provides to its people as much per year. This is good as the government won’t need to worry about a sudden increase in the demand for goods and services because their population is growing slowly.

External Factors:

Legacy Of History – After WWII, Germany was in ruins and needed to rebuild into the great country they are today. But to do that they needed to endure grueling years of poverty and shortages. But by 1989 Germany reunited and became the 3rd biggest economy in terms of GDP.

Does everyone in Germany enjoy a high level of well-being?

Compared to other countries, Germany records well across many dimensions of well-being. It is above average in areas such as income, wealth, housing, education, and personal security as well as many others. According to the OECD Better Life Index, about 75% of people aged 15 to 64 in Germany have a paid job and 87% of adults aged 25-64 have completed upper secondary education. These statistics are important as they outline the opportunities Germany’s people have of succeeding in their life and suggest their overall well-being is stable.

Unemployment Rate: the unemployment rate is defined as the percentage of individuals that are not willing or are not able to participate in paid work for a variety of reasons. This is calculated using a method where the number of unemployed individuals is divided by the number of people in the labor force. This percentage is used to compare the levels of employment in different countries to calculate living standards.

GDP: The GDP is known as the Gross Domestic Product and is a measurement regarding a country’s market value. It is the total amount of goods created and services provided in a certain time period but is usually calculated annually. The GDP is measured using a variety of components related to a specific country. These components may include Government spending, Consumption expenditure, and Business Investment. Imports and Exports also contribute to GDP as Imports lower the value and Exports improve and increase the value of a country’s Gross Domestic Product. Inflation Rate: The inflation rate is defined as the rate by which prices at a general level rise or devaluate over a yearly period in an economy. The inflation rate can be measured in many different ways but is most commonly tracked through the Consumer Price Index. This index measures the dramatic changes in the prices of certain goods or services over a variety of different areas of consumption.

Human Development Index: the Human Development Index (HDI) is a tool used to measure the living standards of a particular country or area based on their development and economic growth. A country’s HDI can be measured using a variety of different statistics such as; Life expectancy, Inflation rate, and Gross domestic product. HDI doesn’t include statistics involving poverty or inequalities of a country but is used for an overview of a country’s development.

Data Collection and Analysis

Australia: Trends in Australia’s GDP over the past 10 years

According to The Trading Economies website, Australia’s Gross Domestic Product has changed significantly over the past ten years in many ways as well as reaching new national records in overall GDP. Australia’s GDP contributes 2.31 percent to the world’s overall economy and is ranked the 14th highest country is related to market value. Australia reached an all-time high in GDP in 2013 when it increased to over 1.5 trillion USD. Australia averaged an annual increase of 3.3% in GDP recorded from 1960 to the present date. Australia’s overall GDP since 2009 has recorded many periods of fluctuation, especially towards the end of 2012 and the start of 2016 with a significant decrease of 366.2 Billion USD. This dramatic drop in GDP was mainly influenced by the cuts in spending by consumers, businesses, and the government. This nearly leads to the first technical recession in Australia since the early 1990s. Although since 2016, Australia’s Gross Domestic Product has been slowly increasing back to a stable rate. In January 2019 Australia experienced its weakest growth rate of 1.8% since the Global Financial Crisis that occurred in 2008. This was a result of the drop in many major contributors to GDP such as; Retail sales which dropped -by 0.1%, construction work which dropped -by 1.9%, and business investments which dropped -by 1.7%.

Germany: Trends in Germany’s GDP over the past 10 years

According to the Trading Economies website, Germany’s GDP has also changed rapidly in the last 10 years. Germany’s GDP value calculates to represent 6.45 percent of the total world economy and ranks them the 14th highest country in relation to market value. Germany recorded it highest GDP very recently in 2018 with a value of 3996.76 Billion USD. Germany’s average GDP growth rate is 2% when calculated from 1971 to 2019. This percentage dropped to a record low from previous years when it plummeted -6.8% in 2009. This enormous decrease in GDP was the result of Germany’s worst recession since the Second World War. Germany who is a country dependent on exports was deeply affected by the collapse of the large investment company Lehman Brothers in late 2008. This collapse caused Germany’s unemployment rate in 2009 increased and an extra 155,000 more people than the previous year were left without jobs. Germany’s economy is on the rise after a surge in household spending, a significant rise in export, and a pick-up in construction activity. This is great for Germany as they were able to recover from the huge drop in GDP that occurred in 2015.

Australia:

The unemployment Rate in Australia was calculated at 5.2% in June 2019. This places Australia far behind in regards to the unemployment rate as our numbers are significantly greater than countries such as the United States of America or the United Kingdom. In June the number of unemployed individuals increased by 6,600 people as overall employment only rose by 500. Australia’s unemployment is rate could be described as a high to moderate percentage, but for a country with such high living standards, these percentages are not up to par and should be significantly reduced.

The inflation Rate in Australia rose to 1.6% in June of 2019. This sudden lift from previous months was due to an increase in prices in food and petrol showed its highest rise since September 2014, As well as minor increases in housing, clothing, medical and travel. The inflation rate was predicted to be much lower and was a shock to the economy when the prices skyrocketed. Australia has a moderately low inflation rate which is good as it encourages consumers to purchase goods and services. A low inflation rate indicates that an economy is stable and in a good economic state.

Australia’s Human Development Index is 0.939 which ranks it 3rd in the world in regard to living standards. This is a very high ranking and is because of many factors that contribute to good living standards. Australia’s life expectancy is 83.1, its expected years of schooling is 22.9 and its Gross National Income per capita is valued at $43,560 USD. These factors are all high above the average statistics which places Australia as a very developed country in terms of living standards.

Germany:

The unemployment rate in Germany was recorded at 3.1% in June 2019. This places Germany in a great position in regards to the unemployment rate as only a small portion of their population is unwilling or unable to work. Their percentage is much lower than in countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Unemployment in Germany dropped 1.5% whilst the employment rate grew by 0.1%. This is the lowest that Germany’s Unemployment rate has been since their reunification in 1990, and this value will continue to diminish if Germany increases the amounts of jobs in their economy.

The inflation rate in Germany was calculated at 1.7% in July 2019 which was a rise from previous months and higher than the expected rate. This rate is lower than Germany’s average inflation rate from 1950 to 2019 which was 2.37%, but these rates are predicted to increase as the prices of necessities such as food and electricity are expected to rise by over 2% each. Germany has a moderately low inflation rate which is good as it encourages consumers to purchase goods and services.

Germany’s Human Development Index is 0.936 which ranks it 5th in the world in regard to living standards. This is a high ranking as it places them high above many other economically advanced countries. Germany’s life expectancy is 81.2, Expected years of schooling are 17, and Gross National Income per capita is valued at $46,136 USD. These statistics are all high above the average value for each of their criteria and are the reason why Germany is ranked highly on the Human Development Index.

Spatial Inequality

Australia:

Internal Factors:

Population Growth – Australia’s annual population growth is 1.6% which is much higher than countries such as the United States of America and Canada. This growth in population causes a demand for more resources such as education, healthcare, infrastructure, and basic necessities to satisfy the needs of Australia’s growing amounts of people. Australia’s large population growth is also a barrier for development.

Environmental degradation – Since the European settlement in 1788, 13% of Australia’s original vegetation has been destroyed or removed because of clearing activities for agricultural land. Overgrazing has been the main contributor to the depletion of Australia’s vegetation.

External Factors: N/A

1. Does everyone in Australia enjoy a high level of well-being?

Overall Australia ranks very highly in relation to its people’s well-being. It is above average in areas such as income, wealth, housing, education, and personal security as well as many others. According to the OECD Better Life Index, 81% of adults aged 21-64 had completed upper secondary education, and 73% of people aged 15-64 have a paid job. These statistics are important as these factors are vital for a country and its people to have high levels of well-being.

Germany:

Internal Factors:

Population Growth – Germany has a very low annual population growth percentage of only 0.4% which is much lower than countries such as Australia and the United States. This means that Germany doesn’t have to change the amount that it provides to its people as much per year. This is good as the government won’t need to worry about a sudden increase in the demand for goods and services because their population is growing slowly.

External Factors:

Legacy Of History – After WWII, Germany was in ruins and needed to rebuild into the great country they are today. But to do that they needed to endure grueling years of poverty and shortages. But by 1989 Germany reunited and became the 3rd biggest economy in terms of GDP.

Does everyone in Germany enjoy a high level of well-being?

Compared to other countries, Germany records well across many dimensions of well-being. It is above average in areas such as income, wealth, housing, education, and personal security as well as many others. According to the OECD Better Life Index, about 75% of people aged 15 to 64 in Germany have a paid job and 87% of adults aged 25-64 have completed upper secondary education. These statistics are important as they outline the opportunities Germany’s people have of succeeding in their life and suggest their overall well-being is stable.