45th Agenda 

45th Session Issues

Human and Social Development

by
Cynthia Beamon & Christopher J. Cargill

How to ensure that the human and social developmental needs of the world are met for the future.

Human Development

Economic development needs to be conceived not just with increasing economic rates of growth or building huge industrial complexes, but with the needs and welfare of the whole population. Human development as defined by the Human Development Report (HDR) is, "a process of enlarging people's choices." The committee defined it as "the most critical of these wide-ranging choices are to live a long and healthy life, to be educated and to have access to resources needed for a decent standard of living. Additional choices include political freedom, guaranteed human rights and personal self-respect."

The HDR 1990 index measures the deprivation suffered in each country in three components—Life expectancy at birth, literacy, and income or purchasing power (adjusted real gross domestic product per capita). Each component is scaled from one (representing the greatest deprivation) to zero (absence of deprivation). Income is measured against the average official poverty line in nine industrial countries as the upper cap, and is based on purchasing power to minimize the distortions at official exchange rates. The indexes for each component are averaged and yield the country's deprivation index.

In 1992 the HDR discussed global income inequality and unequal outcomes of global markets, where poorer countries are paying higher interest rates and in turn are able to borrow less. These poor countries also suffer from low primary commodity prices (the only exception being oil) and from protectionism.

The 1993 report continued on the theme that development must be centered on people and that the widening range of people's choices is an indicator of progress in development. The 1994 report emphasizes preventive action, as it is far cheaper and more humane to act early rather than face tragic consequences. Of the 173 countries on the Human Development index, 13 countries are near crisis, including Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq, and Zaire. Additionally there are four countries with regions near crisis; these countries are Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa, and Brazil.

The HDR recommends "20-20 compacts" where a donor country would allocate 20 percent of its aid money to human development programs such as education, health care, clean drinking water, family planning, and nutrition. The receiving country would commit 20 percent of its budget to the same programs. Another recommendation of the HDR 1994 is the reduction of military spending by 3 percent per year over the next five years. It is estimated that this would generate $460 billion that could be used to finance the worlds social needs.

Social Development

On March 11-12, 1995 the World Summit for Social Development will take place in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Summit is aimed at putting the needs of people at the center of development and international cooperation. The General Assembly, in resolution 47/92, specified that the Summit should, "address in creative ways the interaction between the social function of the State, market responses to social demands, and the imperatives of sustainable development."

In the later half of this century industrialized economies material progress has been described as "spectacular," however the distribution of these gains has been "highly unequal." Huge disparities persist between the richest and the poorest nations, and poverty and destitution do not appear to have been reduced. Concurrently, development models were considered inadequate. The population of the world continues to increase at a rate of approximately 90 million people per year—most of whom end up in cities "suffering today from problems of overcrowding, inadequate public services, and insecurity."

The 1995 Summit's three core issues—Social integration, poverty, and employment—are considered "crucial" for the development of individuals and societies. Discussion will likely center on these issues.

An enabling economic environment would consist of the promotion of free trade and the movement away from protectionism, diversification of production, and debt relief. Social integration would need to concentrate on improvement of living standards and a need to improve the conditions for peaceful development.

To reduce poverty, social institutions need to be implemented. Such things as health-care facilities, distribution systems and information centers are needed for this. Employment or rather unemployment is at an estimated 30 percent of the labor force in the world. An additional 700 million are underemployed.

The June 1994 UN Chronicle states that "Summit participants may wish to formulate an approach to social problems and to state or recall a number of principles'. Specifically five types of international cooperation would help promote social development: raising awareness of the importance of social aspect of development; exchanging information and experience; establishing a policy dialogue in areas of special concern; developing norms, standards, conventions and other international instruments; and identifying areas of cooperation and direct support of developing countries by the international community."

Conclusion

The inequities between northern industrial states and southern poor states will not be solved overnight. The United Nations through its various committees can work toward the goal of a more equal world socially, economically, and environmentally. The issues addressed at the Population Conference in Cairo in 1994 and to be addressed in Copenhagen in 1995 are but one of many steps needed to change the world in a way that will satisfy all nations. The importance here is that the issues of overpopulation, economic inequities, and human and social development are being addressed where in the past they had been virtually ignored.

Questions

1. How to establish an economic development plan in the South that will be acceptable to all nations of the world?
2. How to educate the uneducated and undereducated people of the world?
3. How to stabilize the population of the earth?
4. Through what channels will any solutions be implemented?

Sources

Commission gives high priority to monitoring global trends." UN Chronicle. June 1994, 10.

"Draft for 1995 Summit Prepared" UN Chronicle.. June 1994, 58-59.

"Human Development Report 1992 - Review." The Geographical Journal. Vol. 159, Part 3, November 1993.

International Labour Review. Geneva, Switzerland: International Labour Office Vol. 131, no. 2, 1992.