Norway, Australia and the Netherlands lead 2011’s Human Development Index (HDI) rankings, the annual United Nations measure of progress in human well-being, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Niger and Burundi are at the bottom

The HDI, issued by the UN Development Program (UNDP), combines measures of life expectancy, literacy, school enrollment and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. In 2011, a record 187 countries and territories were measured – up from 169 in 2010. Norway retained its top position from 2010, ahead of Australia and then the Netherlands, while the United States, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Germany and Sweden comprise the remainder of the top 10 in that order. But when the HDI is adjusted for economic inequality, the standings of some countries fall significantly. The United States falls from 4 to 23, the Republic of Korea (ROK) from 15 to 32, and Israel from 17 to 25. The report notes that income distribution has worsened in most of the world and reveals that Latin America has the largest income inequality, although it is more equitable than sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia in life expectancy and schooling. The report also shows that countries at the bottom of the list still suffer from inadequate incomes, limited schooling opportunities and low expectancy rates due to preventable diseases such as malaria and AIDS. The report stresses that a lot of the problems encountered by countries with low rankings are worsened by armed conflicts and its devastating consequences. In the DRC, the country with the lowest ranking, more than three million people died from warfare and conflict related illnesses. UNDP also released its related Gender Inequality Index, which puts various European countries at the forefront of gender equality. Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark and Switzerland head the rankings, followed by Finland, Norway and Germany. That index takes into account indicators on reproductive health, schooling years, government representation and participation in the labour market. Yemen ranks as the least equitable, followed by Chad, Niger, Mali, the DRC and Afghanistan. In the case of Yemen, just 7.6% of women have secondary education, 0.7% of legislature seats are occupied by women and only 20% of working-age women have paid jobs. In addition, the report highlights regional differences which cause gender disparities. In sub-Saharan Africa, gender gaps arise in education and are worsened by high maternal mortality and adolescent fertility rates. In contrast, in South Asia, gender inequality is mainly due to women lagging behind men in parliamentary representation and labor force participation.