(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) – The UNDP Resident Representative in Sri Lanka, Robert Juhkam officially handed over the Global Human Development Report (HDR 2020) to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa today at his residence in Wijerama.
The Human Development Report (HDR), is the annual flagship report published by the Human Development Report Office of the United Nations development Programme (UNDP) that evaluates and measures human progress.
This year’s 30th publication, emphasizes on the relationship between people and nature, focusing on the impact that human activity has on the earth and stresses on the importance of improving people’s lives while working towards an inclusive and sustainable future for all.
Mr. Juhkam pointed out that Sri Lanka is in the high human development category, positioned 72 out of 189 countries, and is the highest in the South Asian region.
Between 1990 and 2019, Sri Lanka’s HDI value has increased from 0.629 to 0.782, an increase of 24.3 percent. Further in relation to the new PHDI (Planetary pressures-adjusted HDI) featured in the report, Sri Lanka is ranked at the top in the South Asian region at rank 38 overall.
Sri Lanka’s Life expectancy at birth increased by 7.5 years, average years of schooling increased by 2.3 years and expected years of schooling increased by 2.8 years while GNI per capita increased by about 229.4%.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa assured Sri Lanka’s contuses commitment towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and finding transformative pathways during these turbulent times and look towards UNDP for a stronger collaboration.
