Developing Countries

What is a developing country? How does one know whether a country is actually developing or not? This report looks at this issue from several perspectives. Using a series of reports by various organizations, it shows how countries rank in their levels of development according to different criteria. Countries ranking high according to one measure may rank lower according to another. It was once commonly believed that raising a country’s average per capita income level would lead to improvements in most other areas. Time and experience have shown, however, that social conditions and the general well-being of people may not necessarily improve when a country’s average income level increases. Countries with relatively high levels of per capita income may rank lower in their social and structural development. By contrast, some poor countries rank with the advanced countries in their governance and levels of individual and economic freedom.