How Inclusive Is India?
The stories about India scaling new highs India and setting new benchmarks could often make one wonder. If the country is making all that progress, why are my own finances in the doldrums? Where is there no symmetry between the progress you and your country make?
The World Economic Forum (WEF) while releasing this year's Inclusive Development Index just narrowed it down for us.
According to the WEF, “decades of prioritising economic growth over social equity has led to historically high levels of wealth and income inequality”. Since all the focus is on tracking the gross domestic product growth, governments are missing out the fact that growth is strengthened by “being shared more widely and generated without unduly straining the environment or burdening future generations”.
“The GDP measures current production of goods and services rather than the extent to which it contributes to broad socio-economic progress as manifested in median household income, employment opportunity, economic security and quality of life,” the WFF said.
In light of this fact, let us find out where we stand on the Inclusive Development Index.
Who are the best?
While Norway remains the world's most inclusive advanced economy, Lithuania has again topped the list of most inclusive emerging economies. Further, small European countries dominate the top of the index of advanced economies, with Australia, at the ninth spot, being the only exception. The top-five most inclusive emerging economies are Lithuania, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Latvia and Poland. Among BRICS nations, Russian is the best performer (19th) , followed by China (26) , Brazil (37) , India (62) and South Africa (69) .
Where does India really stand?
When one looks at the ranking of neighbouring China (26th) and Pakistan (47th) , India's positioning at the 62nd spot looks unimpressive. In 2017, India ranked 60th among 79 developing nations. Even then, China was ranked 15th and Pakistan at 52.
As for the three categories*, India ranks 72nd for inclusion, 66th for growth and development and 44th for inter-generational equity.
However, India is among the 10 emerging economies with “advancing” trend, says the index, its overall score notwithstanding. Only two advanced economies have shown “advancing” trend.
Learn from thy neighbours
When it comes to inclusion, our neighbours are doing better. Sri Lanka (40) , Bangladesh (34) and Nepal (22) are ranked above India in the list. In fact, economies such as Mali, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Ghana, Ukraine, Serbia, Philippines, Indonesia, Iran, Macedonia, Mexico, Thailand and Malaysia are also placed above us.
*Note: The 2018 index rates 103 economies on 3 individual pillars, including growth and development, inclusion and inter-generational equity. The index also takes into account the living standards, environmental sustainability and protection of future generations from further indebtedness.