What does the UN's Human Development Index (HDI) assess?

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite statistic that assesses a country’s social and economic development based on three key dimensions: health, education, and standard of living. Specifically, it measures life expectancy at birth as an indicator of health; the mean years of schooling and expected years of schooling as indicators of education; and Gross National Income (GNI) per capita as an indicator of living standards.

By integrating these factors, HDI provides a broader understanding of well-being beyond merely economic statistics, reflecting the overall quality of life and human development in a country. This multidimensional framework allows for a more holistic evaluation of progress and helps identify areas where improvements are necessary for enhancing human development.

In contrast, the other options focus on specific aspects that do not comprehensively represent the overall human development paradigm. For instance, assessing political stability or the availability of natural resources does not directly examine the combined impact of health, education, and income on human capabilities and quality of life. Similarly, the level of corruption in government pertains to governance issues rather than the direct measurement of social and economic development as captured by the HDI. Thus, the emphasis on health, education, and income collectively defines what HDI comprehensively assesses in the context of social and