Conclusion – Class 12 Geography Notes Chapter 4 Human Development

Growth and Development

Both growth and development refer to the changes over some time....

Human Development

Earlier the development level of a country was judged on the basis of the economic growth of the said country, even if the growth did not really bring any changes in the lives of most people. People’s quality of life, the opportunities and the freedom they have etc., became essential indicators of a nation’s development later on. Dr Mahbub-ul-Haq , introduced the concept of human development in 1990. This concept of human development is based on the idea that a meaningful life is not just a long one, but one with a purpose. Dr Haq stated that the development is all about expanding people’s choices so that they can a lead long and healthy lives with dignity. Nobel Laureate Prof Amartya Sen saw an increase in freedom as the main objective of development. His work explores the role of social and political institutions and processes in increasing freedom....

The Four Pillars of Human Development

The concept of human development is aided by the concepts of equity, sustainability, productivity and empowerment, which are described as the four pillars of human development. These are listed below in the table:...

Approaches to Human Development

The four approaches of looking at the problem of human development are given below:...

Measuring Human Development

The UNDP publishes the Human Development Report every year since 1990. It ranks all its members (countries), based on a score between 0 to 1, according to their level of human development, which is based on their performance in the areas of health, education and access to resources. Following are the ways of measuring human development:...

International Comparisons

On comparing the human development of different countries, it has come to light that the size of the territory and per capita income are not directly related to human development. Relatively poor countries have been ranked higher in terms of human development than their richer neighbors. For e.g.- Despite having smaller economies, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago have higher rank than India. For comparisons, the countries are classified into four groups on the basis of human development scores earned by them:...

Conclusion – Class 12 Geography Notes Chapter 4 Human Development

It can be concluded that economic development does not automatically mean human development. Quality of life, freedom of choice, equal opportunities for everyone are important indicators of human development, along with financial improvement. It is also important to note that government expenditure on social sector has great contribution to a country’s ranking on HDI. Countries with high HDI generally invest more in the social sectors and are comparatively free from political instability; As opposed to this, countries with low HDI tend to spend more on Defence rather than social sectors, as they are prone to frequent political turmoil. It should be a common goal to achieve greater human development for all countries by spending more in social sector, and all nations should work towards it....

Human Development- FAQs

When was HDI first published?...