Jordan drops three places in Human Development Index

AMMAN — Jordan has dropped three places in the UN Human Development Index (HDI), ranking 80th of 188 countries in the 2015 report issued by UNDP on Tuesday. 

Jordan had taken 77th place in the previous two years in the index, which measures long-term progress in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living. 

A long and healthy life is measured by life expectancy, while access to knowledge is measured by the average number of years of education received in a lifetime by people aged 25 years and older. 

Standard of living is measured by the gross national income (GNI) per capita.

The HDI found that the average life expectancy in Jordan is 74, with 13.5 years of schooling and a GNI of $11,365.20 per capita. 

“Between 1980 and 2013, Jordan’s HDI value increased from 0.587 to 0.745, an increase of 27 per cent or an average annual increase of about 0.73 per cent,” the report said.

The report puts Jordan eighth among the 22 Arab countries, preceded by Qatar at 32, Saudi Arabia (39), the UAE (41), Bahrain (45), Kuwait (48), Oman (52), and Lebanon (67). 

Work itself in all of its forms will not stimulate human development unless basic requirements of employment are met, such as quality, conditions and social value, the report added.

It highlighted the Kingdom’s efforts to deal with employment issues facing young people.

“Since the Arab Spring, Jordan and Tunisia have pursued comprehensive national employment strategies, broadening their focus from youth-centred active labour market policies to address many other employment challenges,” it said.

Globally, Norway came in first place, followed by Australia and Switzerland, while Niger came in last place.