Turkey ranks 64th in UNDP Human Development Index

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON

Turkey ranks 64th among 189 countries and territories in the latest Human Development Index (HDI), the UN Development Programme (UNDP) said in a report released Friday.

Turkey's HDI value for 2017 is 0.791, a figure that placed the country in the high human development category, said the report.

Introduced in 1990, the HDI is a summary measure for assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living.

In 1990, the value was 0.579, and according to this figure, Turkey made 36.6 percent progress in development in roughly three decades.

The report showed that the country's life expectancy increased 11.7 years between 1990 and 2017 and years of education rose 3.5 years. Gross national income (GNI) per capita showed about a 121.2 percent rise in the same period.

According to the Gender Inequality Index (GII), Turkey has a value of 0.317, ranking it 69 out of 160 countries in the 2017 index.

Women constituted 14.6 percent of parliamentary seats, and 44.9 percent of adult women have reached at least a secondary level of education compared to 66.0 percent of their male counterparts.

Female participation in the labor market is 32.4 percent compared to 71.9 percent for men, said the report.

Norway retains its top position, while Niger is at the bottom of the index.