LocationsHow can the Kyrgyz Republic recover and resume its human development trajectory after the setbacks caused by COVID-19?
From vision to action: the past, present and future of human development in the Kyrgyz Republic
February 8, 2024
Human development remains on a long-term rise since 1996 but was severely interrupted by the pandemic in 2020. Already showing strong signs of recovery, UNDP Kyrgyz Republic lead experts on the upcoming National Human Development Report on energy-induced vulnerabilities explain the key logic behind the Human Development Index – the key tool to measure human development – and its application in the country.
Human development, in essence, refers to the progress and improvement in the quality of life of individuals within a society. It goes beyond just economic growth and focuses on enhancing people's capabilities, opportunities, and freedoms. It encompasses aspects like access to quality education, healthcare, work, gender equality, justice, and social inclusion, among other critical features of a society people may have reason to value.
The Human Development Index (HDI) provides a comprehensive snapshot of a nation's development by considering both economic and social indicators. It helps us compare different groupings, including countries or provinces within a country, and evaluate how well they are meeting the needs and aspirations of people. By analyzing HDI, policymakers and researchers can identify areas where interventions and improvements are needed to enhance human development.
While human development aims to ensure that people lead fulfilling lives by providing them with the necessary tools and opportunities to thrive, the HDI serves as a valuable tool to assess and monitor progress in achieving these aspirations.
First launched in 1990, UNDP’s HDI remains a powerful tool to gauge the progress on economic, education and health outcomes for a country. By combining in a single measure three core factors for human choice, the HDI captures the ability to have a decent standard of living, to have knowledge, and to live a long and healthy life.
The HDI was developed to challenge other measures of the state of a country, such as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), to deliver a more holistic picture of human well-being. Three core dimensions constitute the HDI: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge, and a decent standard of living. These dimensions are measured using four key indicators: life expectancy at birth, mean years of schooling, expected years of schooling, and Gross National Income (GNI) per capita.
By combining these indicators and dimensions, the HDI offers a holistic assessment of a country's progress and allows for meaningful comparisons across nations. The HDI ranges from 0 to 1, with 1 being the highest level of human development that a country can attain. While the HDI is not a perfect tool to measure all aspects of human wellbeing, it remains a valuable instrument to assess the general wellbeing of the population beyond the income dimension only. Detailed notes on the methodology to calculate the HDI can be found here.
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/human-development-index#/indicies/HDI
Detailing the concept, measurement and use of the HDI provides powerful opportunities to support the sustainable development of countries. In October 2023, UNDP in the Kyrgyz Republic hosted a technical workshop on HDI for policymakers to deepen such understanding and application of the HDI.
HDI for Kyrgyz Republic
So, how was human development as measured by the HDI shifted for the Kyrgyz Republic? From 1990 to 2000, the Kyrgyz Republic experienced a -0.27 per cent setback in the HDI. Growth in the HDI accelerated in the decade from 2000 to 2010 but has slowed in the period from 2010 to 2020.
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
Relative to the world average and that of a United Nations grouping of Europe and Central Asia, the Kyrgyz Republic shows a distance to go in accelerating annual HDI growth.
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
What factors are driving these shifts in human development in the Kyrgyz Republic? The staying power of the HDI is due as much to its simplicity in reflecting a topic as complex as human development, as to its potential explanatory power of the patterns and drivers of human well-being. Using the HDI to understand a country’s progress – or regress – can be done by disentangling the underlying factors that constitute the HDI.
At a high level, one can see how shifts in life expectancy and income produce the largest effects on the HDI, while education has remained steadier.
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
Global HDI Rankings
Since 1990, UNDP has been promoting the human development approach as well as calculating the HDI through annual Global Human Development Reports (HDR) that include a global ranking of countries based on the HDI. Official HDI calculations are done by the Human Development Report Office at UNDP based on nationally produced data collected through custodian agencies of the UN System.
Each HDR focuses on a particular theme – the most recent Global HDR 2021/2022 focused on uncertainty and ranked the Kyrgyz Republic 118th out of 190 countries on a global ranking of the HDI for United Nations member states, placing the Kyrgyz Republic next to Bolivia and Venezuela. With the HDI value of 0.692 (2021), the Kyrgyz Republic is considered a country with a medium level of human development. A forthcoming Global HDR focusing on collective action will be published soon and will present the most recent HDI calculations and ranking.
Over the years, the Kyrgyz Republic has made significant progress in improving its HDI. However, it has consistently remained in the medium group of countries with medium HD. While the Kyrgyz Republic has made commendable strides, there is always room for further improvement. The HDR serves as a guide to identify areas where countries can focus their efforts to enhance human development. By addressing these areas, the Kyrgyz Republic can continue its journey towards improved human development in the future.
Rising up the HDI rankings
In its National Development Programme until 2026, the Kyrgyz Republic has made the commitment to increase five rankings in the HDI by 2030. This is a commendable and important commitment—making analysis of the patterns and drivers of the HDI a starting point. If all else holds equal, an increase in five rankings would bring the Kyrgyz Republic’s HDI value to 0.728. Preliminary analysis suggests that HDI must grow at a rate of 0.56 per cent per year to reach this—or nearly 1.5 times the HDI growth rate in the decade from 2010 to 2021. There are many paths to reach this—and detailed analysis of the HDI is necessary to find levers for success in this target.
Figure: Future trends needed for the Kyrgyz Republic to rise 5 HDI rankings
Source: Mihail Peleah, “Technical Workshop on the Human Development Index.” UNDP in the Kyrgyz Republic, 11 October 2023, Bishkek.
Beyond the HDI
The HDI is not the only composite index that purports to tell a country’s story. The gender development index (GDI), gender inequality index (GII), the inequality-adjusted HDI (IAHDI), and the planetary pressures HDI offer different insights into matters relevant to human development.
The GDI was created to highlight gender disparities in terms of human development. It considers the same dimensions as the HDI but includes a gender-specific perspective. It reflects differences in achievements between women and men in life expectancy, education, and income. The GDI helps to assess the progress of gender equality within a country.
The GII aims to capture gender-based inequalities in three critical dimensions: reproductive health, empowerment, and economic activity. It measures gender inequalities in these areas and provides insights into the challenges faced by women in various countries. The GII helps policymakers address gender disparities and promote gender equality.
The IAHDI builds upon the HDI by incorporating a measure of inequality within countries. It takes into account not only the average level of human development but also the distribution of achievements across the population. This index helps to understand the impact of inequality on human development outcomes.
The Planetary Pressures HDI expands the traditional HDI by considering the environmental sustainability aspect of human development. It incorporates indicators related to carbon dioxide emissions, material footprint, and water use efficiency. This index recognizes the need to balance human development with environmental sustainability.
These composite indices were developed to provide different perspectives on human development and societal progress. They take into account various dimensions to offer a more comprehensive understanding of a country's development status. These indices enable policymakers and researchers to identify areas of improvement and formulate targeted strategies for a more equitable and sustainable future. At an overview level, each of these indices shows patterns of improvement, but were setback by the effects of COVID-19.
Source: UNDP Human Development Report Office. Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center
The future of the HDI
There are more things that matter to human well-being than could be captured in a single measure. Human capabilities, the social choice theory that provides the thinking behind the HDI, holds several other critical features: a need to focus not only on the culmination of outcomes, but on the processes or the fairness of institutions to reach them; the importance of reflecting issues outside of the domains of income, education and health such as mental well-being; and further exploration of the limits of environmental capacities.
The forthcoming National Human Development Report for the Kyrgyz Republic will reflect these and other findings from the research process. It will, in particular, provide a snapshot of sub-national human development using the HDI, providing insight into the patterns and gaps across the Kyrgyz Republic’s provinces. Taken together, the painting of human well-being the HDI and other indices provides can help anchor important policy and programme action to accelerate inclusive and sustainable development for all in the country.
What will be your role in shaping the future of human development in the Kyrgyz Republic? Join us through the research and launch process for the upcoming NHDR to share your thoughts.