<h3 dir="ltr">Introduction</h3>
Development is a widely debated concept. While the dictionary definition is simple, the literature on development offers various interpretations. These include development as change, intervention for improvement regardless of the outcome, advancement with a positive outcome as the objective, and a means for improvement that enables future development (Potter, et al., 2017). Moreover, our understanding of the term &lsquo;Development&rsquo; has changed due to global forces and theoretical advances (Potter, et al., 2017).
To assess progress in development, regardless of the definition used, it must be measured. The influence of development economics during the 1950s and 1960s has had significant implications for other development-related terminologies, particularly in identifying and characterizing underdeveloped countries (Potter, et al., 2017). However, the measurement of development relies on economic indicators that fail to acknowledge its multidimensional nature, an idea which will be explained in the following section.
The pursuit of economic growth under capitalism necessitates a yearly rise in GDP of 2-3%, which results in the doubling of the global economy every 23 years. This has perpetuated a ceaseless pattern of producing and consuming goods, many of which hold no social significance, all in the interest of maintaining growth and profit. Consequently, natural resources are being depleted, while the amount of waste generated per annum is increasing, leading to ecological crises in which humanity exceeds the safe scope for exploitation of planetary resources identified by the scientific community (Hickel, 2020).
<h3 dir="ltr">Measuring Development</h3>
Classical economics maintains that an increase in income determines a nation's success. Simon Kuznets, a Nobel laureate, introduced the use of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to measure US national income in the 1930s (Prasad &amp; Castro, 2018). GDP is the total value of goods and services produced within a country. It includes all output from residents in market and non-market sectors and encompasses government services. Gross National Product (GNP) measures a country's resident output regardless of location (Callen, 2023). Per capita scores of GNP and GDP are widely used to allow for cross-country comparisons.
Relying solely on GDP as a development measure is inadequate for several reasons. For one, it fails to consider the overall standard of living and well-being afforded to a nation&rsquo;s residents. Although GDP per capita is commonly used to gauge the welfare of the average citizen, it fails to account for critical factors such as environmental harm or other external costs. Furthermore, boosting output may come at the expense of leisure time or the depletion of non-renewable resources. In addition, factors like how a country&rsquo;s GDP is distributed among its residents may have a greater impact on their quality of life than the neglect of economic growth (Callen, 2023).
For example, the United States of America (USA) ranks first in terms of GDP, but it has a high Gini index, a common income distribution measure. This implies a significant income gap between the richest and poorest individuals in the country (World Bank, 2023).&nbsp;
Over the years, various composite measures of development have been proposed. The Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) was a previous measure that is now outdated and has been replaced by the Human Development Index (HDI) developed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). The HDI is a composite measure of three indicators: Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, life expectancy, and educational attainment (White, 2014).
HDI is a measure of how well a country is doing in terms of its citizens' health, education, and standard of living. It takes into account life expectancy at birth, the average years of schooling for adults and children, and the gross national income per capita. The HDI uses the logarithm of income to demonstrate that income becomes less important as it increases. The scores for each of these dimensions are combined using a geometric mean to create a composite index.&nbsp;
This can provide a powerful tool to compare and contrast different nations' human development outcomes. By examining two countries with similar GNI per capita, the HDI can highlight the stark differences in their respective social, economic, and political policies. This, in turn, can inspire meaningful discussions about the priorities and choices made by different governments and the impact they have on their citizens' well-being.
The HDI construct has been criticized for its use of a composite measure, which presents three main problems. First, determining which variables should be included in the index. Second, the weights assigned to the variables are arbitrarily chosen, which impacts the accuracy of the average. Finally, when multiple indicators are combined into a single number, some information can be lost (White, 2014). The HDI does not consider the indicators' distribution or income inequality within a country. Additionally, the HDI fails to account for important factors, such as political freedom, gender equality, and environmental sustainability.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/FzD85TrwDaT3rTds4KRjyl3NTDbRTPjV_j2B0IJFhDBvVgU9AK0FpJ2i8T_gcrVoiyoa9j06iszCOFo3WgnbCxRqNazzi_r69JFEu2lWuZXbEYThLAyCRYN2LqFLPb_OZ8mqe-cJpsbFvBilzep9_A" width="629" height="112">
To expand upon HDI, the UNPD has created several adjusted indexes incorporating additional factors (Figure 1). The Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI) accounts for inequality in the distribution of each dimension across the population. However, due to limited data availability, the IHDI is currently unable to assess the joint distribution of inequality in all three dimensions, i.e., income, health, and education. This means that while the IHDI can provide some insight into overall inequality in human development, it cannot provide a comprehensive overview of how inequality is distributed across all three dimensions (Klasen, 2018).
Figure 2, Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (HDI).
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/8JXwcELEbPsnPAfp6ICJ2RrF_kUvp80nigeLOrFoC3YR3C8Peu2i5EHnJsvCmaTudwY19QfHZ-XxfbI5otlKe7Ll2OvEGLpY365SejVMjHMU4gDF8QQTym6SUEsW1-eOiONXidr8blxA-NYch8h_Eg" width="629" height="166">
Source: Human Development report 2021/2022 technical notes
In 1995, the UNDP introduced two indicators to measure gender-related development. However, the organization later realized that these indicators had some shortcomings and opted to rework them. Thus, the UNDP introduced two new indices - The Gender Development Index (GDI) and The Gender Inequality Index (GII) - to better address gender-related issues (Klasen, 2018). The Gender Development Index (GDI) measures gender inequalities in health, education, and command over economic resources. The Gender Inequality Index (GII) reflects gender-based disadvantages in reproductive health, empowerment, and the labor market.
Figure 3, Gender Development Index (GDI) and The Gender Inequality Index (GII))
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/9dcmYqT-L6z3u3t4x7r2Ur-YoZbZBWZCVs0i0ecXUx-KjVXKUzvR0xKH9WS30hDNzA-KIcUYrn-mbgVD3gUcLaIIYzNC7mGeuxl78XocNp76aIdCEg5ngmrLM9aEWR8peASLHbFmZzQEYHCBCQ94kg" width="629" height="372">
Source: Human Development report 2021/2022 technical notes
The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), introduced in 2010, measures the deprivations of health, education, and standard of living at the household level (UNDP, 2023). The index is comprehensive and takes into account various factors beyond income to assess poverty levels. It assesses people's capabilities and measures their access to basic needs such as education, health, and decent living conditions. Designed to complement income-focused indicators, the MPI provides a more nuanced understanding of poverty. It is worth noting that there are gaps in all the indexes, especially with regard to sustainability measures, which focus on Earth&rsquo;s preservation and the resource base required to meet current and future human needs (Klasen, 2018).
Figure 4, Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/GYL4PyKiMcaD0Onzhs10A32EN9Nfnaor4kLve_iC4h9pteUYMLdh3cQY0qUR5QoTHlg0U7_mn5P5seqtHhaPeM1Qn5ksPXhozPP2tpKTpnrpVNjgqnDVzx-qFmRK8mQAzZKTDQ0hsQxRhP_Sn6vpfw" width="629" height="129">
Source: Human Development report 2021/2022 technical notes
The Social Progress Index (SPI) report, created in 2013, gauges social progress. It is independent of traditional economic indicators and has three dimensions, 12 components, and 60 hands. The 12 components relate to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) &ndash; tracking the progress made toward these goals and predicting performance by 2030 (Social Progress Imperative, 2022). However, one of the main criticisms of the SPI Index is its heavy reliance on Western values (Rowan, 2022).
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/XvcaI6-ZWmqm-1JuyKCvGtWjEHjIZNQqZxTSW8hYe7gK8vRUP5PI1ezDAEC9I2MFIdkmG0zZ-KClxFjONNDByEOeHlQ1DXIhzikR-n-VQi80gz67WO6VFDQ6J-WDk6aFz9Vn2nhnwajAe6aJsP1A-A" alt="A diagram of wellbeing and wellbeingDescription automatically generated" width="629" height="298">
<h3 dir="ltr">Where Egypt Stands in different indices</h3>
Based on data from the World Bank, Egypt had the 28th largest GDP in 2022. However, when considering GDP per capita, Egypt ranked 140th (World Bank, 2023). In terms of the Human Development Index (HDI), Egypt received a score of 0.731 and was ranked 97th for the 2021/2022 ranking, according to the UNDP. For the IHDI, Egypt scored 0.519 and dropped 21 spots to rank 118th for the same period, as reported by the UNDP (UNDP, 2023). Finally, Egypt received a low score and was ranked 113th out of 169 (Tier 4 out of 6 tiers) on the SPI, according to the Social Progress Imperative in 2022 (Social Progress Imperative, 2022).
<h3 dir="ltr">Conclusion</h3>
Examining development indicators is essential to uncover global disparities and justify support. However, these indicators have limitations and only provide a brief overview of development. The United Nations has introduced additional measures to address this. Development interventions should consider contextual factors that impact future generations' well-being, prospects, and survival.
Upon examining Egypt's development, it is apparent that the country's progress is marked by mixed indicators. While Egypt boasts one of the highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the region, it fails to score well when the social indicators are incorporated. The social indicators that Egypt lags behind on include basic needs such as access to healthcare, education, and sanitation facilities. Therefore, it is recommended that Egypt considers both economic and social indices to ensure sustainable development. By doing so, Egypt will not only maintain its economic growth but also improve the well-being of its citizens.
<hr>
References
<ul>
<li>Callen, T., 2023. International Monetary Fund. [Online] Available at: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/fandd/issues/Series/Back-to-Basics/gross-domestic-product-GDP [Accessed 10 November 2023].</li>
<li>Hickel, J., 2020. Less is More: How Degrowth Will Save the World. London: Penguin.</li>
<li>Klasen, S., 2018. Human Development Indices and Indicators: A Critical Evaluation, s.l.: UNDP Human Development Report Office.</li>
<li>Potter, R. et al., 2017. Questioning development. s.l.:Taylor &amp; Francis.</li>
<li>Prasad, M. K. &amp; Castro, A., 2018. International Growth Centre. [Online] Available at: https://www.theigc.org/blogs/gdp-adequate-measure-development [Accessed 17 November 2023].</li>
<li>Rowan, A., 2022. WellBeing International. [Online] Available at: https://wellbeingintl.org/social-progress-index/ [Accessed 10 November 2023].</li>
<li>Social Progress Imperative, 2022. : 2022 Social Progress Index, s.l.: Social Progress Imperative.</li>
<li>UNDP, 2023. 2021/2022 Technical Notes, s.l.: United Nations Development Programme.</li>
<li>White, H., 2014. The measurement of poverty. In: V. Desai &amp; R. Potter, eds. The Companion to Development Studies. s.l.:Taylor and Francis, pp. 60-66.</li>
<li>World Bank, 2023. The World Bank Group. [Online] Available at: https://databank.worldbank.org/reports.aspx?source=2&amp;series=NY.GDP.MKTP.CD&amp;country= [Accessed 10 November 2023].</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Further Readings
<ul>
<li>Human Development Indices and Indicators: A Critical Evaluation. A report by UNDP</li>
<li>2022 Social Progress Index Methodology Report. A report by the Social Progress Imperative</li>
<li>Gross Domestic Product: An Economy&rsquo;s All. An article by Tim Callen (division chief in the IMF&rsquo;s Middle East and Central Asia Department)</li>
</ul>

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