Montenegro

UNDP Global Report Charts Two Decades of Human Development Progress - The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development

United Nations, 4 November 2010

Montenegro ranks 49th on the index, with a Human Development Index (HDI) value of 0.769, out of a total 169 countries. This ranking places Montenegro in the “high human development” category and Montenegro is ahead of all countries of former Yugoslavia except Slovenia, which ranks 29th and hence falls into the category of “very high human development”. Comparable 2010 HDI data show that Montenegro HDI dropped compared with 2007 when HDI value (0.771) was strongly influenced by GDP index growth. More info on Montenegro Country profile of human development indicators at: http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/MNE.html. The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite index which measures levels of health, education and income. Norway, Australia, and New Zealand fill the top three positions in 2010, while Niger, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zimbabwe are at the bottom of the annual rankings.

The 20th anniversary edition The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development 2010 (available at: /en/reports/global/hdr2010/) was launched on November 4th by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, UNDP Administrator Helen Clark and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen. The Human Development Reports and the HDI challenged purely economic measures of national progress calling for consistent global tracking of progress in health, education and overall living standards.

“The Human Development Reports have changed the way we see the world. We have learned that while economic growth is very important, what ultimately matters is using national income to give all people a chance at a longer, healthier and more productive life,” Ban Ki-moon said today. “The Report shows that people today are healthier, wealthier and better educated than before. While not all trends are positive, there is much that countries can do to improve people’s lives, even in adverse conditions. This requires courageous local leadership as well as the continuing commitment of the international community.” Helen Clark said.

Most developing countries made dramatic yet often underestimated progress in health, education and basic living standards in recent decades, with many of the poorest countries posting the greatest gains, reveals a detailed new analysis of long-term Human Development Index (HDI) trends in the 2010 Human Development Report. Yet patterns of achievement vary greatly, with some countries losing ground since 1970, the reportshows. Introducing three new indices, the 20th anniversary edition of the Report documents wide inequalities within and among countries, deep disparities between women and men on a wide range of development indicators, and the prevalence of extreme multidimensional poverty in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. The Human Development Reports, commissioned annually by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) since 1990, are editorially independent from UNDP.

ABOUT THIS REPORT: Since its inception in 1990, the Human Development Report has provided fresh insights into some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity. The Human Development Report is an independent yearly publication of the United Nations Development Programme but it is not UNDP product alone. The Reports relay on knowledge, contributions, and insights from sister UN agencies, governments, civil society, scholars, universities and other contributors round the world. Complete texts of the 2010 Report and all previous Reports since 1990 are available for free downloading in major UN languages on the Report website: http://hdr.undp.org

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For more information on the 20th anniversary Human Development Report and the complete press kit please visit: http://hdr.undp.org

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UNDP Montenegro is in processes of development of the National HDR, under the working title: ‘People are the real wealth of the country’ How rich is Montenegro?. The NHDR will consider the status of human capital in Montenegro, the trends in its formation/depletion since the beginning of transition, the institutional mechanisms involved and it will make recommendations on improving the efficiency of human capital formation and utilization. The analysis – and the recommendations in particular – will be constructed against the background of the vision of Montenegro in 15-20 years from now.