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Unit 3: Human Development Index and PQLI

High” HDI. Half a year later, in April 2010, the Human Development Report Office provided the Notes
2010–2030 HDI projections (quoted in September 2010, by the United Nations Development
Programme, in the Human Development Research paper 2010/40). These projections were reached
by re-calculating the HDI, using (for components of the HDI) projections of the components conducted
by agencies that provide the UNDP with data for the HDI.
The HDI was projected for all countries for which there was a complete data series for the 2010–2030
period. For example, the HDI was projected for every “non-tiny” country (i.e. for every country
whose population is more than 800,000), that had a “Very High” HDI (i.e. an HDI of 900 or higher),
in the 2009 Human Development Report. The HDI was not projected for countries for which there
was no complete data series for the 2010–2030 period; Hence, the projection ignores countries which
are not UN members (Hong Kong being an exception), and also ignores all “tiny” countries (among
which seven had a “Very High” HDI in the 2009 Human Development Report: Andorra, Barbados,
Brunei, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Malta). All non-”tiny” UN members for which no
projection was made, didn’t have a “Very High” HDI in the 2009 Human Development Report,
although ten of them had (in the 2009 Human Development Report) a “High” HDI (i.e. 800 or
higher): Albania, Belarus, Bosnia Herzegovina, Lebanon, Macedonia, Mauritius, Oman, Panama,
Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay.
According to these projections, Japan will lead among countries in the data set, with an HDI of 998
in 2030.

3.5 Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI)

The Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) is an attempt to measure the quality of life or well-being
of a country. The value is the average of three statistics : basic literacy rate, infant mortality, and life
expectancy at age one, all equally weighted on a 0 to 100 scale. It was developed for the Overseas
Development Council in the mod-1970s by Morris David Morris, as one of a number of measures
created due to dissatisfaction with the use of GNP as an indicator of development. PQLI might be
regarded as an improvement but shares the general problems of measuring quality of life in a
quantitative way. It has also been criticized because there is considerable overlap between infant
mortality and life expectancy.
Steps to Calculate Physical Qality of Life:
(1) Find percentage of the population that is literate (literacy rate).
(2) Find the infant mortality rate. (out of 1000 births) INDEXED Infant Mortality Rate = (166 -
infant mortality) × 0.625
(3) Find the Life Expectancy. INDEXED Life Expectancy = (Life expectancy - 42) × 2.7

Physical Quality of Life = (Literacy Rate + INDEXED Infant Mortality Rate + INDEXED
Life Expectancy)

In 1979, D. Morris constructed a composite Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI). He found that most
of the indicators were inputs to development process rather than result of the development process.
These indicators reflected that economically less developed countries are simply underdeveloped
versions of industrialized countries.
He, therefore, combines three component indicators of Infant Mortality, Life Expectancy and Basic
Literacy to measure performance in meeting the basic needs of the people. However, the choice of
indicators is
1. Life Expectancy Indicator (LEI)
2. Infant Mortality Indicator (IMI)
3. Basic Literacy Indicator (BLI)

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