U.N. report on decline in health, education and standard of living

 A United Nations report confirmed that the world has retreated 5 years in the field of development, in terms of life expectancy, education and standard of living.

 In its report published on Thursday, 8th of September, the United Nations expressed its fear that the war in Ukraine would exacerbate the situation.

 For the first time since its adoption thirty years ago, the Human Development Index, which takes into account life expectancy, education and standard of living, declined for two years in a row, in 2020 and 2021, and returned to what it was in 2016, the United Nations Development Program said in its report.

 The report explained that this “massive decline” includes more than ninety percent of the world’s countries.

 “This means that we die earlier, that we are less educated and that our incomes decline,” said Achim Steiner, head of this United Nations agency.

“Through these three criteria, you can get an idea of why people are starting to feel hopeless, frustrated and anxious about the future,” he stressed.

While the index has been rising continuously for decades, in 2021 it returned to the level it was in 2016 “erasing” years of development.

The main reason is COVID-19, along with the increasing climate disasters and crises that are piling up without giving the population time to catch their breath.

“We have experienced disasters before and there have been conflicts before, but the combination of what we are facing today represents a major setback for human development,” Steiner stressed.