Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Social Progress Index

The following is taken from the site of the Social Progress Initiative:
We created the Social Progress Index to broaden how country success is measured, beyond economic indicators like GDP per capita. Social progress is about meeting everyone’s basic needs for food, clean water, shelter, and security. It is about living healthy, long lives, and protecting the environment. It is about education, freedom, and opportunity.
I've tried to find out who "We" is but the site is not the clearest in the world when it comes to saying who they are unless one is willing to spend a lot of time on the issue. The site lists a number of foundations that fund it and thanks a raft of people. Yet, it's hard to judge the accuracy of its work. 

The index is based on three major areas: 
1. Basic Human Needs, which are defined as Nutrition and Basic Medical Care, Water and Sanitation, Shelter Personal Safety.
2. Foundations of Wellbeing,  which are defined as Access to Basic Knowledge, Access to Information and Communications, Health and Wellness, Environmental Quality
3. Opportunity, which is defined as Personal Rights, Personal Freedom and Choice, Tolerance and Inclusion, Access to Advanced Education.

The report covers 128 countries.  We did not do very well; we ranked 18.

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