Belize in upper middle of development rankings - 07/16/03 04:39 PM
Every year the United Nations
Development Programme issues its
Human Development Report, an
attempt to quantify the development
of the world's nations by measuring
life expectancy, education, and
standard of living. Belize has
traditionally ranked near the top of a
middle range of countries and this year is no exception. Out
of one hundred and seventy-three nations, Belize comes in
at number sixty-seven. This puts us well behind such regional
neighbours as Barbados (number twenty-eight), Costa Rica
(forty-two), Bahamas (forty-nine), St. Kitts (fifty-one),
Cuba (fifty-two), Trinidad (fifty-four), Mexico (fifty-five) and
Antigua (fifty-six), but ahead of Dominica (sixty-eight), St.
Lucia (seventy-one), Jamaica (seventy-eight), St. Vincent
(eighty), Guyana (ninety-two), El Salvador (one hundred and
five), Honduras (one hundred and fifteen), Guatemala (one
hundred and nineteen) and Nicaragua (one hundred and
twenty-one). The authors of the study point to thirty-one
countries in which progress toward the U.N.'s millennium
development goals has either stalled or actually reversed.
Belize is not among those nations, although our ranking has
dropped slightly since last year's report, in which we ranked
number fifty-eight. By 2015 all United Nations members
have pledged to eradicate extreme hunger and poverty,
achieve universal primary education, promote gender
equality, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health,
combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases, ensure environmental
sustainability and develop a global system that promotes
development.
Development Programme issues its
Human Development Report, an
attempt to quantify the development
of the world's nations by measuring
life expectancy, education, and
standard of living. Belize has
traditionally ranked near the top of a
middle range of countries and this year is no exception. Out
of one hundred and seventy-three nations, Belize comes in
at number sixty-seven. This puts us well behind such regional
neighbours as Barbados (number twenty-eight), Costa Rica
(forty-two), Bahamas (forty-nine), St. Kitts (fifty-one),
Cuba (fifty-two), Trinidad (fifty-four), Mexico (fifty-five) and
Antigua (fifty-six), but ahead of Dominica (sixty-eight), St.
Lucia (seventy-one), Jamaica (seventy-eight), St. Vincent
(eighty), Guyana (ninety-two), El Salvador (one hundred and
five), Honduras (one hundred and fifteen), Guatemala (one
hundred and nineteen) and Nicaragua (one hundred and
twenty-one). The authors of the study point to thirty-one
countries in which progress toward the U.N.'s millennium
development goals has either stalled or actually reversed.
Belize is not among those nations, although our ranking has
dropped slightly since last year's report, in which we ranked
number fifty-eight. By 2015 all United Nations members
have pledged to eradicate extreme hunger and poverty,
achieve universal primary education, promote gender
equality, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health,
combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases, ensure environmental
sustainability and develop a global system that promotes
development.