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Home Earth Continents Countries The 2016 United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) rankings for all countries


Compare with the Human Development Index of 2011 and past years.
Human Development Index (Low human development)
 

___ The Human Development Index 2016
Human Development
 

Human Development for Everyone

People are the real wealth of a nation. Countries with a high Human Development, foster their people, whereas countries with a low human development seem to treat its people as renewable raw material.
Unfortunately the Human Development Index reflects these facts only to some extent.

Norway, Australia, Switzerland and Germany lead the Human Development Index (HDI) rankings in 2016, eight European countries are in the top 10, followed by the two wealthy countries of North America, Canada and the US, and inbetween the only Asian country, Singapore.

At the bottom of the list are nineteen African countries! The reasons for that are manifold, but the main reasons are a handful: Civil Wars, terrorism and tribal conflicts, widespread corruption, an education and the knowledge gap (many African nations cannot afford basic education), health and poverty (poor African countries with poor living conditions are not able to create a quality health infrastructure for its own people, HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Ebola and other contagious diseases spread more rapidly in communities that are poor and do not have access to basic amenities), geographically disadvantage (a significant number of African countries suffer because they have all the disadvantages to be landlocked). International Aid (some non-governmental organizations have helped Africa through support, but some firms have been accused of using stories of desperate Africans to advance their own selfish goals, others to foster corruption within the country.) (see: 7 Top Reasons Why Africa Is Still Poor, 2017)
The international community should do more to tackle Africa's poverty, otherwise the rich countries will see many more refugees standing at their borders.

The Human Development Report
Each year since 1990 the Human Development Report has published the Human Development Index (HDI) which was introduced as an alternative to conventional measures of national development. The HDI represents a broader definition of well-being and provides a composite measure of three basic dimensions of human development: health, education and income.


Definitions:

Human Development Index (HDI)
The composite index is measuring the average achievement of a country in three basic dimensions of human development:
  • a long and healthy life
  • knowledge
  • a decent standard of living
Life Expectancy Index
The number of years you may live under normal conditions in a particular country.
Life expectancy at birth
Number of years a newborn infant could expect to live if prevailing patterns of age-specific mortality rates at the time of birth stay the same throughout the infant's life.

Education Index
Education is a major component of well-being, it is a key factor determining whether a country is a developed, developing, or underdeveloped nation.
1. Mean years of schooling
Average number of years of education received by people ages 25 and older, converted from education attainment levels using official durations of each level.

2. Expected years of schooling
Number of years of schooling that a child of school entrance age can expect to receive if prevailing patterns of age-specific enrollment rates persist throughout the child's life.

Income Index
It reflects the average income of a country’s citizens.
Gross national income (GNI) per capita
The total income of a country's economy generated by its production and its ownership of factors of production, less the incomes paid for the use of factors of production owned by the rest of the world, converted to international dollars using purchasing power parity (PPP) rates, divided by midyear population.

GNI per capita rank minus HDI rank
 Difference in rankings by GNI per capita and by the HDI. A negative value means that the country is better ranked by its GNI than by its HDI.
 

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Human Development Index (HDI) Life expectancy at birth Expected years of schooling   Mean years of schooling   Gross national income (GNI) per capita   GNI per capita rank minus HDI rank HDI rank  
HDI rank Country Value   (years)   (years)   (years)   (2011 PPP $)          
      2015   2015   2015 a 2015 a 2015   2015   2014  
VERY HIGH HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
1
Norway 0.949   81.7   17.7   12.7   67,614   5   1  
2
Australia 0.939   82.5   20.4 b 13.2   42,822   19   3  
2
Switzerland 0.939   83.1   16.0   13.4   56,364   7   2  
4
Germany 0.926   81.1   17.1   13.2 c 45,000   13   4  
5
Denmark 0.925   80.4   19.2   12.7   44,519   13   6  
5
Singapore 0.925   83.2   15.4   11.6   78,162 e -3   4  
7
Netherlands 0.924   81.7   18.1   11.9   46,326   8   6  
8
Ireland 0.923   81.1   18.6   12.3   43,798   11   8  
9
Iceland 0.921   82.7   19.0   12.2   37,065   20   9  
10
Canada 0.920   82.2   16.3   13.1   42,582   12   9  
10
United States 0.920   79.2   16.5   13.2   53,245   1   11  
12
Hong Kong, China 0.917   84.2   15.7   11.6   54,265   -2   12  
13
New Zealand 0.915   82.0   19.2 b 12.5   32,870   20   13  
14
Sweden 0.913   82.3   16.1   12.3   46,251   2   15  
15
Liechtenstein 0.912   80.2   14.6   12.4   75,065 e,i -11   14  
16
United Kingdom 0.909   80.8   16.3   13.3   37,931   10   16  
17
Japan 0.903   83.7   15.3   12.5   37,268   10   17  
18
Korea (South) 0.901   82.1   16.6   12.2   34,541   12   18  
19
Israel 0.899   82.6   16.0   12.8   31,215   16   19  
20
Luxembourg 0.898   81.9   13.9   12.0   62,471   -12   20  
21
France 0.897   82.4   16.3   11.6   38,085   4   22  
22
Belgium 0.896   81.0   16.6   11.4   41,243   1   21  
23
Finland 0.895   81.0   17.0   11.2 f 38,868   1   23  
24
Austria 0.893   81.6   15.9   11.3 c 43,609   -4   24  
25
Slovenia 0.890   80.6   17.3   12.1   28,664   13   25  
26
Italy 0.887   83.3   16.3   10.9   33,573   6   27  
27
Spain 0.884   82.8   17.7   9.8   32,779   7   26  
28
Czech Republic 0.878   78.8   16.8   12.3   28,144   11   28  
29
Greece 0.866   81.1   17.2   10.5   24,808   16   29  
30
Brunei 0.865   79.0   14.9   9.0 f 72,843   -25   30  
30
Estonia 0.865   77.0   16.5   12.5 c 26,362   12   31  
32
Andorra 0.858   81.5 g 13.5 d 10.3   47,979 j -18   32  
33
Cyprus 0.856   80.3   14.3   11.7   29,459   4   34  
33
Malta 0.856   80.7   14.6   11.3   29,500   3   35  
33
Qatar 0.856   78.3   13.4   9.8   129,916 e -32   33  
36
Poland 0.855   77.6   16.4   11.9   24,117   11   36  
37
Lithuania 0.848   73.5   16.5   12.7   26,006   7   37  
38
Chile 0.847   82.0   16.3   9.9   21,665   16   38  
38
Saudi Arabia 0.847   74.4   16.1   9.6   51,320   -26   38  
40
Slovakia 0.845   76.4   15.0   12.2   26,764   1   40  
41
Portugal 0.843   81.2   16.6   8.9   26,104   2   41  
42
United Arab Emirates 0.840   77.1   13.3 k 9.5 c 66,203   -35   42  
43
Hungary 0.836   75.3   15.6   12.0   23,394   6   43  
44
Latvia 0.830   74.3   16.0   11.7 f 22,589   7   44  
45
Argentina 0.827   76.5   17.3   9.9 f 20,945 l 12   45  
45
Croatia 0.827   77.5   15.3   11.2   20,291   14   46  
47
Bahrain 0.824   76.7   14.5 k 9.4 m 37,236   -19   46  
48
Montenegro 0.807   76.4   15.1   11.3 n 15,410   24   49  
49
Russian Federation 0.804   70.3   15.0   12.0   23,286   1   48  
50
Romania 0.802   74.8   14.7   10.8   19,428   11   51  
51
Kuwait 0.800   74.5   13.3   7.3   76,075 e -48   50  
HIGH HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
52
Belarus 0.796   71.5   15.7   12.0   15,629   19   51  
52
Oman 0.796   77.0   13.7   8.1 m 34,402   -21   53  
54
Barbados 0.795   75.8   15.3   10.5 n 14,952   20   54  
54
Uruguay 0.795   77.4   15.5   8.6   19,148   8   54  
56
Bulgaria 0.794   74.3   15.0   10.8 c 16,261   13   57  
56
Kazakhstan 0.794   69.6   15.0   11.7 f 22,093   -3   56  
58
Bahamas 0.792   75.6   12.7 k 10.9   21,565   -3   58  
59
Malaysia 0.789   74.9   13.1   10.1   24,620   -13   59  
60
Palau 0.788   72.9 g 14.3   12.3 k 13,771   21   62  
60
Panama 0.788   77.8   13.0   9.9   19,470   0   60  
62
Antigua and Barbuda 0.786   76.2   13.9   9.2 k 20,907   -4   61  
63
Seychelles 0.782   73.3   14.1   9.4 k 23,886   -15   63  
64
Mauritius 0.781   74.6   15.2   9.1   17,948   1   64  
65
Trinidad and Tobago 0.780   70.5   12.7 o 10.9   28,049   -25   64  
66
Costa Rica 0.776   79.6   14.2   8.7   14,006   14   66  
66
Serbia 0.776   75.0   14.4   10.8   12,202   22   66  
68
Cuba 0.775   79.6   13.9   11.8 m 7,455 p 48   69  
69
Iran 0.774   75.6   14.8   8.8 f 16,395   -2   68  
70
Georgia 0.769   75.0   13.9   12.2   8,856   38   71  
71
Turkey 0.767   75.5   14.6   7.9   18,705   -7   72  
71
Venezuela 0.767   74.4   14.3   9.4   15,129   2   70  
73
Sri Lanka 0.766   75.0   14.0   10.9 f 10,789   21   72  
74
Saint Kitts and Nevis 0.765   74.0 g 13.7   8.4 k 22,436   -22   75  
75
Albania 0.764   78.0   14.2   9.6   10,252   24   75  
76
Lebanon 0.763   79.5   13.3   8.6 m 13,312   8   74  
77
Mexico 0.762   77.0   13.3   8.6   16,383   -9   77  
78
Azerbaijan 0.759   70.9   12.7   11.2   16,413   -12   77  
79
Brazil 0.754   74.7   15.2   7.8   14,145   -1   79  
79
Grenada 0.754   73.6   15.8   8.6 k 11,502   13   80  
81
Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.750   76.6   14.2   9.0   10,091   22   82  
82
Macedoniaa (Rep. of) 0.748   75.5   12.9   9.4 n 12,405   5   83  
83
Algeria 0.745   75.0   14.4   7.8 c 13,533   -1   84  
84
Armenia 0.743   74.9   12.7   11.3   8,189   28   85  
84
Ukraine 0.743   71.1   15.3   11.3 f 7,361   34   81  
86
Jordan 0.741   74.2   13.1   10.1   10,111   15   85  
87
Peru 0.740   74.8   13.4   9.0   11,295   6   89  
87
Thailand 0.740   74.6   13.6   7.9   14,519   -11   88  
89
Ecuador 0.739   76.1   14.0   8.3   10,536   6   87  
90
China 0.738   76.0   13.5   7.6 c 13,345   -7   91  
91
Fiji 0.736   70.2   15.3 k 10.5 f 8,245   20   91  
92
Mongolia 0.735   69.8   14.8   9.8 m 10,449   4   93  
92
Saint Lucia 0.735   75.2   13.1   9.3 m 9,791   14   90  
94
Jamaica 0.730   75.8   12.8   9.6 f 8,350   16   94  
95
Colombia 0.727   74.2   13.6   7.6 c 12,762   -10   95  
96
Dominica 0.726   77.9 g 12.8 k 7.9 m 10,096   6   95  
97
Suriname 0.725   71.3   12.7   8.3 m 16,018   -27   97  
97
Tunisia 0.725   75.0   14.6   7.1 c 10,249   3   97  
99
Dominican Republic 0.722   73.7   13.2   7.7   12,756   -13   101  
99
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.722   73.0   13.3 m 8.6 k 10,372   -1   99  
101
Tonga 0.721   73.0   14.3 m 11.1   5,284   33   101  
102
Libya 0.716   71.8   13.4 k 7.3 c 14,303   -25   100  
103
Belize 0.706   70.1   12.8   10.5   7,375   14   103  
104
Samoa 0.704   73.7   12.9 d 10.3 d 5,372   27   104  
105
Maldives 0.701   77.0   12.7 o 6.2 q 10,383   -8   105  
105
Uzbekistan 0.701   69.4 r 12.2   12.0 m 5,748   21   108  
MEDIUM HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
107
Moldova (Rep. of) 0.699   71.7   11.8   11.9   5,026   31   105  
108
Botswana 0.698   64.5   12.6   9.2 c 14,663   -33   107  
109
Gabon 0.697   64.9   12.6   8.1 q 19,044   -46   109  
110
Paraguay 0.693   73.0   12.3   8.1   8,182   3   110  
111
Egypt 0.691   71.3   13.1   7.1 f 10,064   -7   111  
111
Turkmenistan 0.691   65.7   10.8   9.9 k 14,026   -32   111  
113
Indonesia 0.689   69.1   12.9   7.9   10,053   -8   113  
114
Palestine, State of 0.684   73.1   12.8   8.9   5,256   21   115  
115
Viet Nam 0.683   75.9   12.6   8.0 c 5,335   18   115  
116
Philippines 0.682   68.3   11.7   9.3   8,395   -7   114  
117
El Salvador 0.680   73.3   13.2   6.5   7,732   -3   115  
118
Bolivia 0.674   68.7   13.8   8.2   6,155   6   118  
119

 

 South Africa 0.666   57.7   13.0   10.3   12,087   -30   119  
120
Kyrgyzstan 0.664   70.8   13.0   10.8 c 3,097   32   120  
121
Iraq 0.649   69.6   10.1 k 6.6 n 11,608   -30   121  
122
Cabo Verde 0.648   73.5   13.5   4.8 k 6,049   3   122  
123
Morocco 0.647   74.3   12.1   5.0 f 7,195   -4   123  
124
Nicaragua 0.645   75.2   11.7   6.5 f 4,747   16   124  
125
Guatemala 0.640   72.1   10.7   6.3   7,063   -4   126  
125
Namibia 0.640   65.1   11.7   6.7 f 9,770   -18   126  
127
Guyana 0.638   66.5   10.3   8.4 c 6,884   -5   125  
127
Micronesia (Fed. States of) 0.638   69.3   11.7 k 9.7 d 3,291   22   126  
129
Tajikistan 0.627   69.6   11.3   10.4 q 2,601   30   129  
130
Honduras 0.625   73.3   11.2   6.2   4,466   11   130  
131
India 0.624   68.3   11.7   6.3 c 5,663   -4   131  
132
Bhutan 0.607   69.9   12.5   3.1 n 7,081   -12   132  
133
Timor-Leste 0.605   68.5   12.5   4.4 q 5,371 l -1   133  
134
Vanuatu 0.597   72.1   10.8 o 6.8 n 2,805   23   134  
135
Congo (Brazzaville) 0.592   62.9   11.1   6.3 c 5,503   -7   135  
135
Equatorial Guinea 0.592   57.9   9.2 k 5.5 q 21,517   -79   137  
137
Kiribati 0.588   66.2   11.9   7.8 k 2,475   23   136  
138
Laos 0.586   66.6   10.8   5.2 n 5,049   -2   137  
139
Bangladesh 0.579   72.0   10.2   5.2 c 3,341   8   140  
139
Ghana 0.579   61.5   11.5   6.9 f 3,839   5   140  
139
Zambia 0.579   60.8   12.5   6.9 f 3,464   7   139  
142
Sao Tome and Principe 0.574   66.6   12.0   5.3   3,070   12   142  
143
Cambodia 0.563   68.8   10.9   4.7 q 3,095   10   143  
144
Nepal 0.558   70.0   12.2   4.1 n 2,337   19   144  
145
Myanmar 0.556   66.1   9.1 m 4.7 f 4,943   -6   146  
146
Kenya 0.555   62.2   11.1   6.3 f 2,881   10   147  
147
Pakistan 0.550   66.4   8.1   5.1   5,031   -10   148  
LOW HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
148
Swaziland 0.541   48.9   11.4   6.8 n 7,522   -33   149  
149
Syria 0.536   69.7   9.0   5.1 s 2,441 t 13   145  
150
Angola 0.533   52.7   11.4   5.0 q 6,291   -27   150  
151
Tanzania 0.531   65.5   8.9   5.8   2,467   10   152  
152
Nigeria 0.527   53.1   10.0   6.0 q 5,443   -23   151  
153
Cameroon 0.518   56.0   10.4   6.1 c 2,894   2   154  
154
Papua New Guinea 0.516   62.8   9.9 k 4.3 f 2,712   4   153  
154
Zimbabwe 0.516   59.2   10.3   7.7   1,588   20   158  
156
Solomon Islands 0.515   68.1   9.6 m 5.3 d 1,561   19   155  
157
Mauritania 0.513   63.2   8.5   4.3 f 3,527   -12   155  
158
Madagascar 0.512   65.5   10.3   6.1 n 1,320   25   157  
159
Rwanda 0.498   64.7   10.8   3.8   1,617   14   162  
160
Comoros 0.497   63.6   11.1   4.8 q 1,335   22   160  
160
Lesotho 0.497   50.1   10.7   6.1 f 3,319   -12   161  
162
Senegal 0.494   66.9   9.5   2.8 m 2,250   3   163  
163
Haiti 0.493   63.1   9.1 k 5.2 c 1,657   9   164  
163
Uganda 0.493   59.2   10.0   5.7 m 1,670   8   165  
165
Sudan 0.490   63.7   7.2   3.5   3,846   -22   165  
166
Togo 0.487   60.2   12.0   4.7 q 1,262   18   167  
167
Benin 0.485   59.8   10.7   3.5 c 1,979   1   168  
168
Yemen 0.482   64.1   9.0   3.0 c 2,300   -4   159  
169
Afghanistan 0.479   60.7   10.1   3.6 f 1,871   1   169  
170
Malawi 0.476   63.9   10.8   4.4 f 1,073   16   170  
171
Côte d'Ivoire 0.474   51.9   8.9   5.0 f 3,163   -20   172  
172
Djibouti 0.473   62.3   6.3   4.1 k 3,216   -22   171  
173
Gambia 0.452   60.5   8.9   3.3 f 1,541   3   173  
174
Ethiopia 0.448   64.6   8.4   2.6 q 1,523   5   174  
175
Mali 0.442   58.5   8.4   2.3   2,218   -9   175  
176
Congo (Kinshasa) 0.435   59.1   9.8   6.1   680   15   178  
177
Liberia 0.427   61.2   9.9   4.4 f 683   13   177  
178
Guinea-Bissau 0.424   55.5   9.2 m 2.9 k 1,369   3   179  
179
Eritrea 0.420   64.2   5.0   3.9 k 1,490   1   181  
179
Sierra Leone 0.420   51.3   9.5   3.3 f 1,529   -1   176  
181
Mozambique 0.418   55.5   9.1   3.5 q 1,098   4   182  
181
South Sudan 0.418   56.1   4.9   4.8 n 1,882   -12   179  
183
Guinea 0.414   59.2   8.8   2.6 q 1,058   4   182  
184
Burundi 0.404   57.1   10.6   3.0 c 691   5   184  
185
Burkina Faso 0.402   59.0   7.7   1.4 q 1,537   -8   185  
186
Chad 0.396   51.9   7.3   2.3 n 1,991   -19   186  
187
Niger 0.353   61.9   5.4   1.7 f 889   1   187  
188
Central African Republic 0.352   51.5   7.1   4.2 n 587   4   188 Africa
                                 
Source: Human Development Report 2016

Notes
a. Data refer to 2015 or the most recent year available.
b. In calculating the HDI value, expected years of schooling is capped at 18 years.
c. Updated by HDRO using Barro and Lee (2016) estimates.
d. Based on data from the national statistical office.
e. In calculating the HDI value, GNI per capita is capped at $75,000.
f. Based on Barro and Lee (2016).
g. Value from UNDESA (2011).
h. Calculated as the average of mean years of schooling for Austria and Switzerland.
i. Estimated using the purchasing power parity (PPP) rate and projected growth rate of Switzerland.
j. Estimated using the PPP rate and projected growth rate of Spain.
k. Based on cross-country regression.
l. HDRO estimate based on data from World Bank (2016a) and United Nations Statistics Division (2016a).
m. Updated by HDRO based on data from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2016).
n. Based on data from United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys for 2006–2015.
o. Updated by HDRO based on data from ICF Macro Demographic and Health Surveys for 2006-2015.
p. Based on a cross-country regression and the projected growth rate from UNECLAC (2016).
q. Based on data from ICF Macro Demographic and Health Surveys for 2006-2015.
r. Value from WHO (2016).
s. Updated by HDRO based on Syrian Center for Policy Research (2016).
t. Based on projected growth rates from UNESCWA (2016) and World Bank (2016a).


 
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Index of countries according to their respect for press freedom.

List of Least Developed Countries (LDCs)

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For in-depth information about the report please go to:
United Nations Human Development Report
Cultural Liberty in Today's Diverse World.
Country Profiles and International Human Development Indicators
 
 
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