The UN released a worrying report on Thursday showing that, on average, nine out of ten countries have taken a step backwards in development.
Why don’t we act? The head of the UN development agency UNDP, Achim Steiner, posed this question after presenting the report. It’s the second year in a row that the global human development index, measured since 1990, has fallen, Steiner said. The situation has deteriorated in nine out of ten countries.
“The world is teetering from crisis to crisis”
“We live in very painful times, whether in an underwater world, without water, on fire or in the midst of a pandemic,” Steiner said. “The world is swinging from crisis to crisis, caught in the cycle of putting out fires without addressing the roots of our problems,” the UNDP warned. The statisticians also saw growing pessimism around the world: six in seven people said they feel insecure and a third said they don’t trust others.
But progress is possible, for example, thanks to new computer technologies, science or new grains, Steiner continued. In Kenya, thanks to extensive initial investment, 90 percent of electricity needs could now be covered by renewable energy sources. Societies that financed fossil fuels made a mistake, Steiner said.
Austria just behind the US in 25th place
According to the new ranking, Switzerland is the most developed country in the world, almost on par with Norway and Iceland. Germany is ninth. At the first edition in 1990, the USA was still in the lead, they are now only in 21st place. Austria is just behind in 25th place and has lost seven places compared to 2019.
Niger, Chad and South Sudan are at the bottom of the 191 countries surveyed.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
