Sultanate tops in development
MUSCAT: The Sultanate has jumped four positions to 48 among 189 countries in the Human Development Index for 2018, issued by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The Sultanate stood fifth at the Arab and GCC level. The Sultanate has also entered into the list of high human development countries for the first time since its inclusion in the report. According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information, the Sultanate obtained 0.821 points in the index, which ranges from zero to 1, to enter the group of countries with very high human development (0.8 -1.0)
The handbook is a brief measure of human development, measuring the average achievements of a country in three basic dimensions of human development: long and healthy life, knowledge acquisition and an adequate standard of living.
The improvement in the knowledge acquisition index is measured by the development, dissemination and improvement of education and efforts to reduce dropout and illiteracy, measured by the average number of years of schooling and the expected number of years of schooling.
In this regard, the Sultanate came in third place in the Gulf and the average value of the study years increased from 8.1 years in 2016 to 9.5 years in 2018. The value of the expected number of years of study in the Sultanate increased from 13.7 years in 2016 to 13.9 years in 2018.
In the birth expectancy index, which reflects the level of health services coverage, quality and impact on the decline in death rates and under-five mortality rates and infant mortality, the Sultanate ranked third in the Gulf in longevity, with a life expectancy of 77.3 years.
With regard to the extent to which resources are obtained to achieve a decent standard of living, the average per capita GDP of the Sultanate is $36,390.
This achievement comes within the context of the upward trend of the Sultanate since its inclusion in the Human Development Index in 2000.