Hong Kong Monitor

No.2 April, 2013

	Hong Kong's Rankings in the UN Human Development Report

	In the United Nations’ latest Human Development Report which highlights the living standards of nations across the globe, Hong Kong ranked 13th amongst 187 countries. The report, entitled "The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World", examined the profound shift in global dynamics driven by the fast-rising developing nations and its long-term implications for human development. In particular, China has become the world's second largest economy and lifted millions out of poverty. According to the report, Hong Kong has a "very high" Human Development Index (HDI), which is a composite measure of health, education and income. HDI was introduced in the first Human Development Report in 1990 as an alternative to pure economic assessments of national progress, such as GDP growth. It is now widely accepted and has been adapted for national use by many countries. In 2012, Hong Kong's HDI was 0.906. This compares to the world average of 0.694 and Norway's 0.955 which topped the list. Australia scored second (0.938) whilst New Zealand ranked sixth, scoring 0.919. Between 1980 and 2012, Hong Kong's HDI rose by 1% annually. The UN report also detailed how Hong Kong achieved its high HDI: Life expectancy, where Hong Kong's average was 83 years. This was second after Japan's 83.6 years. The expect number of years of schooling a child could receive, where Hong Kong scored 15.5 years. When taking into account Purchasing Power Parity, Hong Kong ranked 7th when it came to GDP per capita - above Australia, United States, and Sweden. Hong Kong topped the list when it came to telephone and mobile subscriber penetration rate. There are 256.9 telephone and mobile subscribers per 100 people in Hong Kong. The global average is 157.7. To read more about Hong Kong’s rankings in the latest United Nations Human Development Index, go to: http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/HKG.html




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