Bangladesh moves up in HDI

Bangladesh has moved up three notches in the Global Human Development Index 2015, ranking 139th out of 188 countries, according to the recently published Human Development Report (HDR) 2016 by UNDP. Thanks to the progress, Bangladesh has achieved in a number of socio-economic indicators – such as life expectancy, health and education – the country's improvement in human development is nothing short of impressive.

Furthermore, we have remarkably maintained an average annual HDI growth rate of 1.64 percent from 1990 to 2015 – higher than all other South Asian countries – and have been categorised as a "medium human development" country, according to HDR 2016.

Despite our overall progress indicated by economic indicators, it must be noted that since the Human Development Index (HDI) is an average of basic socio-economic achievements, the HDI masks growing inequality in the country. Bangladesh's HDI for 2015 is 0.579. The closer the figure is to 1, the better its HDI. Bangladesh's HDI drops to 0.412 once you discount it for inequality – one of the primary impediments to human development.

Bangladesh, by adopting the historic 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, has committed itself to reducing inequalities (SDG 10 to be specific) among 16 other goals. Bangladesh's situation must been seen in the context of a global climate where the gap between the rich and the poor is ever increasing. As such, we must work towards a more equitable society in which affordable health care and education, decent labour conditions, access to justice, etc., are available to all. HDI growth will be meaningful only when the lack of equal distribution of human development across the population is addressed.