Progress in the news - November 2011
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Progress in the news November
- India and China continue to struggle with poverty (2point6billion.com 30.11.2011)
Despite rapid growth and their large proportions of global GDP, many people in China and India continue to live in poverty.
- Emerging donors urged to step up standards (Gallup 30.11.2011)
BUSAN, South Korea — Global leaders Wednesday urged emerging aid donors like China to step up efforts to help the world's poor as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned recipients to be "smart shoppers".
- Vienna ranks No.1 in Quality of Life (Bloomberg 29.11.2011)
Despite Europe's economic woes, its quality of life still ranks highest, trailed by those of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, according to a new survey
- Human rights, development in the wake of the Arab Spring (The Citizen 29.11.2011)
Over the past year, in Tunis, Cairo, Madrid, New York and hundreds of other cities and towns across the globe, the voice of ordinary people has been raised, and their demands made clear. They want human beings at the centre of our economic and political systems, a chance for meaningful participation in public affairs, a dignified life and freedom from fear and want.
- China pulls out of aid partnership (The Guardian 30.11.2011)
China says it is not ready to endorse a partnership for global development, snubbing other countries' attempts to forge a common front on aid.
- China raises rural poverty line (The Guardian 30.11.2011)
China has redefined the level at which people in rural areas are considered poor by raising the official poverty line, despite a booming economy.
- Aid conference kicks off in Busan Today (Korean Times 28.11.2011)
Nearly 2,500 policymakers and experts from some 160 countries will attend the Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness to seek more efficient ways of giving international aid while seeking a closer partnership between donor and recipient governments.
- Where voting is a miracle (Toronto Star 28.11.2011)
Statistics in Congo can be so overwhelming that they’re meaningless.
- The Inequality Behind Chile’s Prosperity (Cutting Edge 28.11.2011)
Foreigners on business trips usually travel from Chile’s Santiago International Airport to the city’s financial center in the El Golf neighborhood via the Costanera Norte or Vespucio Norte highways.
- Jamaica has high pupil-teacher ratio - UNDP (The Gleaner 28.11.2011)
Despite a slight four percentage increase in the number of children who mastered the 2011 Grade Four Literacy Test when compared to the 2010 sitting, Jamaica still has the highest pupil-teacher ratio at the primary level in the Caribbean.
- Chilean women earn 35% less than men, study finds (Santiago Times 28.11.2011)
Wages for Chilean men are more than a third higher than for Chilean women, according to a new study released Friday by the National Statistics Institute.
- Allow poor to define their futures (Al Jazeera 28.11.2011)
Despite an increase in middle income countries, new plans and methods that are well researched are desperately needed.
- Ghana: Global Human Development Still Needs Improvement (All Africa 26.11.2011)
The development of people or humans in the world is expected to increase as the years goes by, however, due to environmental issues, and how people choose to live their lives, bearing in mind that with every action they take concerning the environment, it has a future consequence on people around them.
- The injustice called 'hunger' (Manila Standard Today 26.11.2011)
Amid the entire political furor in recent weeks over the prosecution of a former president is an issue that has been swept under the rug. More Filipinos are getting poorer and hungrier each day.
- Climate Change Portal helps visualise world climate, expand access to data (The World Bank 23.11.2011)
A new Climate Change Knowledge Portal, launched today, includes visualisation tools depicting temperature and rainfall scenarios to the year 2100. It links users to more than 250 climate indicators, and includes risk profiles for 31 countries where climate open data websites may launch in the next year.
- The World in 2012 (The Economist 22.11.2011)
Trying to predict what will happen in the next year is difficult enough at the best of times.
- Report urges emerging economies to tackle inequalities (The Guardian 21.11.2011)
Recent social unrest in places like Tunisia highlights why countries should not disregard people's desire to share in the benefits of economic growth, says OECD.
- The Future of Development Aid (Project Syndicate 21.11.2011)
Even skeptics admit it: effective aid works.
- Venezuela leads on UN human development goals (Links 21.11.2011)
In 2000, the Bolivarian government of Venezuela embraced the United Nations Millennium Development Goals to achieve a better standard of living for the entire population.
- OECD inequalities: country by country (Financial Times 21.11.2011)
The United States has the highest inequality level and poverty rate (ie those who live on less than half median incomes) in the OECD after Mexico and Turkey. Since 2000, income inequality has increased rapidly, continuing a long-term trend that dates back to the 1970s.
- The Arab States and the MDGs: No Progress without Social Justice (Sudan Vision Daily 21.11.2011)
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be met in the Arab region by 2015 at the current rate of progress.
- Regional cooperation stressed at climate change meeting (Eco-Business 20.11.2011)
The Thimphu ministerial meeting on climate change, today decided to adopt a regional ‘Framework of Cooperation’ to tackle climate change in Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Bhutan. The meet also stressed finding funds to tackle the problem from within the region.
- Bhutan holds a 4-nation climate summit (Costa Rica News 20.11.2011)
Keen to guard its ranking as Asia’s happiest country, Bhutan has hosted a climate summit and an international symposium accompanied by an exhibition in the Kingdom’s capital Thimphu – far away from the hustle and bustle of world’s metropolitan cities – in run-up to a landmark UN conference in Durban, South Africa, from November 28 to December 9, 2011.
- Nobody's Property (20.11.2011)
How do you quantify happiness in a diverse nation like ours? Growth levels, value-based structural changes, what can affect it?
- Happiness is Love -- and $75,000 (Gallup Management Journal 17.11.2011)
Two researchers uncover what really makes people happy: friends and money... though you don't have to be rich to be happy.
- Asia Foundation Unveils Data Site “Visualizing Afghanistan” for 2011 Survey of the Afghan People (PR Web 17.11.2011)
To accompany the broadest and most comprehensive public opinion poll of Afghan citizens, "Afghanistan in 2011: A Survey of the Afghan People," The Asia Foundation launched an interactive mapping platform and data visualisation site, "Visualizing Afghanistan." Through "Visualizing Afghanistan," the Foundation is making its Afghan survey data available and downloadable to researchers and the public to use and republish, with citation.
- Inequality still the major issue: Ansari (The Times of India 14.11.2011)
The UNDP Human Development Report 2011 has revealed that around a quarter of human development at the global level is being lost due to inequality. Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari emphasises the role of inequality in his nation, where "the overall human development loss due to inequality is over 28 per cent. And it is the highest in education, around 40 per cent".
- Human development scores show progress (Gulf News 13.11.2011)
The 2011 Human Development Report points to notable improved results for numerous GCC countries, and for good reasons
- Gallup: Fewer in U.S. can afford food (Gallup 13.11.2011)
The percentage of U.S. adults who had enough money for food fell to 79.8 percent in October from 80.1 percent in September, a Gallup Poll says. Americans' access to basic needs is now at the lowest level recorded since Gallup and Healthways began tracking it in January 2008.
- Tanzania ranks second in quality of life index performance (The Citizen 13.11.2011)
This year’s Human Development Index (HDI) shows that Tanzania, like Venezuela, climbed seven places making the two countries among the 72 best performing countries between 2006 and 2011 with Cuba leading the pack by improving its position by 10 slots.
At a time when the world recognises that mere GDP growth as a development goal is a false promise, and with the UN now making “happiness” a development goal, a number of countries are turning to the little Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for lessons.
- We see India as an opportunity, says Bhutan PM (Deccan Chronicle 09.11.2011)
At a time when the world recognises that mere GDP growth as a development goal is a false promise, and with the UN now making “happiness” a development goal, a number of countries are turning to the little Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for lessons.
- Global summit on human wellbeing aims to produce action plan for philanthropists and development organisations (Institute of Development Studies 09.11.2011)
The Bellagio Initiative Summit opens today, bringing together leading figures from the worlds of development, philanthropy, politics, economics, business and civil society.
- Entrepreneurial democracies and the happiness factor (The Globe and Mail 08.11.2011)
The Legatum Prosperity Index, which tracks “wealth and well-being” in 110 countries, demonstrates – year after year – that providence favours small, entrepreneurial democracies.
- Ban urges greater use of data and new technologies to tackle global crises (UN News 08.11.2011)
Ban Ki-moon today called for greater use of the latest real-time data tools and new technologies to facilitate development and anticipate crises before their impacts become sources of human suffering.
- Gap continues to rise in economic well-being (Tri Cities 08.11.2011)
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- Age Gap Rises in Economic Well-Being (ABC News 07.11.2011)
The rich aren’t just getting richer, but wealthy older Americans are noticeably better-off than their counterparts from three decades ago in several areas like income, employment, home ownership and housing values.
- Boosting Standards of Living a Team Effort (The Jakarta Globe 07.11.2011)
How do we measure quality of life? Is it measured by how much we earn?
- Gender Gini (Indian Express 05.11.2011)
The UNDP’s 2011 Human Development Report was released in New Delhi on Wednesday.
- G20 meeting: key data for each country (The Guardian 02.11.2011)
Who will be at the G20 meeting in France this week and what do they bring to the table?
- Towards the bottom in terms of income/well-being (Business Recorder 05.11.2011)
The London-based Legatum Institute ranked Pakistan 107th, fourth lowest in performance, amongst countries according to income and well-being.
- ONS seeks public views on national wellbeing indicators (Research Live 02.11.2011)
The Office for National Statistics has published a list of key indicators of national wellbeing, in the latest stage of its consultation.
- Amazonas 2030 - Indicators for the Climate Crisis (IPS 02.11.2011)
Sixty per cent of the Colombian Amazon is forested area with varying degrees of protection. Amazonas 2030 Index shows the role that the natural environment and indigenous communities play on economic, social and institutional dimensions of development.
- Progress in the Gender Gap (The Daily Beast 01.11.2011)
The World Economic Forum’s 2011 global gender gap index shows countries are making progress in the status of women, with Western nations like Norway and Sweden still leading the way and the U.S. moving up, but not yet in the top 10.
- In praise of … wellbeing surveys (The Guardian 01.11.2011)
How anxious are you? How much of what you do do you feel is worthwhile? Are you satisfied with life? Since April, official statisticians have been asking these questions of 200,000 households as part of a monthly survey.
- Happiness Tied To Longer Life, Study Finds (Huffington Post 01.11.2011)
A new study suggests that older people who are happy have a 35 percent lower risk of dying over a five-year period than unhappy people. The research was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
- Meet the happiest woman in America (USA Today 31.10.2011)
USA Today asked Healthways to tease out of its data what contributes to high well-being for the largest demographic in America today - women age 45 to 55. Happiness is fleeting. Well-being is a sustained background of physical, emotional and social health.
- Keep smiling... the world is doing fine, say American authors (Guardian 30.10.2011)
A series of new books argues that all the essential statistics show the world is making progress, materially and ethically.
Archive
For blog posts on progress prior to 2011, see:
