Our position in human development index
BANGLADESH'S bettering the past year's performance by moving two notches higher in the Human Development Index (HDI), 2009 to rank 146th among 182 countries speaks, and we believe, bodes well for the country. We should draw inspiration from having moved up since 1980, but only inched ahead, so to speak, in real terms. Thus, there is nothing to be elated about or be complacent over, or indeed, to rest on our laurels.
Instead, we must wholeheartedly strive to reach a higher standing with higher targets set in the parameters that make up the ranking. For one thing, we are at the bottom of the other South Asian nations: Maldives is 95th in the ranking chart followed by Sri Lanka (102nd), Bhutan (132nd), India (134th), Pakistan (141st) and Nepal (144th, two steps higher than us). For the other, intrinsically, as far back as in 2003, we had come out of what is termed 'the low developed country status' and made it to the medium developed country. So, the peaking has not quite been there in about last six years; there is thus a need for acceleration of the pace.
The next higher categorisation shouldn't be too difficult to reach. The three measures -- life expectancy at birth, adult literacy rate and GDP per capita -- are certainly worthwhile goals to accomplish within a specific time-frame. Among the stratagems to be adopted, one option having a strategic potential to turn things around relates to offering "a new deal" to migrant workers whose skills can help spur economic development. For this to happen as the Human Development report of the UNDP suggested, governments of all countries need to effect changes in their immigration policies and see how they can integrate these in the best interests of both manpower receiving and sending countries.
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