U.S. slips in global development

First let's look at the numbers. Norway ranks first globally as having the highest human development index; Australia, Iceland, Canada, and Ireland follow. The U.S. fell one place from last year and comes in thirteenth, or just behind Japan, Luxembourg and Finland.

When we analyze the wider list, one sees Singapore's standing at 23, Hong Kong at 24, South Korea standing at number 26. Russia ranks at 71 and Brazil at 75. Mainland China's standing improved seven places and now stands at 92. Taiwan, which would have ranked highly, is politically airbrushed out of the data stream. East Asia, along with Europe and North America, rank among the best regions in this global snapshot.

Sadly, countries like Central African Republic, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan are at the bottom of the list.

The report views global migration issues as a key factor prompting development. Interestingly one discovers, “Most movement in the world does not take place between developing and developed countries; it does not even take place between countries. The overwhelming majority of people who move do so inside their own country.” Indeed, one of the biggest global flows of people is within mainland China. The report adds, “Between 1984 and 1995, the People's Republic of China progressively liberalized its strict regime of internal restrictions, allowing people to move from one region to another. Massive flows followed.” The massive urbanization and progress of coastal China is testament to this trend.

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