The Kingdom of Bahrain was the highest-ranking Arab country on the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)’s Human Development Index for 2002. All other nations in the region, with the exception of Bahrain, were downgraded by at least one position this year.
Kuwait came out as the second highest-ranking nation in the Arab World, followed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar, all ranking in the High category. Libya, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon followed, ranking in the Medium category. Oman, Tunisia, Iran, Jordan, Algeria, Syria, Egypt and Morocco were all ranked Medium while Yemen ranked in the Low category.
The Human Development Index is intended to draw the attention of policy makers on human results rather than on the more usual economic statistics. It emphasizes that people’s needs and capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for assessing the development of a country. The index is a summary measure of life expectancy, education and standard of living levels. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
