Rise of developing nations transforms global power balance

The rise of developing countries is radically reshaping the world, with those nations lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and propelling billions more into a new global middle class, according to a new UN report published on Friday.

The United Nations Development Programme's 2013 Human Development Report said the level of progress by developing nations has been unprecedented, with more than 40 countries making greater human development gains in recent decades than had been predicted.

The achievements, it said, are largely attributable to sustained investment in education, healthcare and social programs, and had created engagement across an increasingly interconnected world.

According to the report, the sustained economic growth has seen the combined economic output of China, Brazil and India match the cumulative GDP of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States for the first time in 150 years.

China has made an important contribution to the achievements of the developing world due to its economic growth and impressive human development achievements, the report said, after lifting more than 510 million people out of poverty since 1990 and cutting the proportion of the population living on less than $1.25 a day from 60.2 percent in 1990 to 13.1 percent in 2005.

With China's great efforts, the UN's Millennium Development Goal target of halving poverty relative to 1990 levels was met three years before the 2015 deadline, it added.

China's Human Development Index has risen from 0.695 in 2011 to 0.699, above regional and BRICS averages of 0.683 and 0.655 respectively, the report said.

China's HDI represents a remarkable increase of 72 percent from 0.407 in 1980.

Fang Jin, deputy secretary-general of the China Development Research Foundation, said China should cooperate further with other developing countries and play a bigger role on the international stage by sharing its achievements and experience in human development.

Christophe Bahuet, the UNDP's country director in China, said the report highlights that developing countries must not be complacent and have to continue focusing on key issues now affecting their rapid progress, such as aging, the environment and inequality.

Renata Dessallien, the UN resident coordinator in China, said the current difficult economic conditions should not be used as an excuse for developed countries to avoid their responsibilities.

In fact, because they are privileged, they have a bigger responsibility to help, she said.

The report said that the historic progress had created opportunities for developing and developed countries to cooperate in new ways to confront shared challenges such as climate change. Developing countries are extending trade, technology and policy ties throughout developed nations, while developed nations are looking for new partnerships that can promote global economic growth, it said.

zhouwa@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/16/2013 page7)