Amid a flurry of published reports about the 2010 United Nations Human Development Report, a story appeared: Barbados Shines.
Published in this paper on November 8, it drew attention to the fact that in the highly credible account of the global state of quality of life, Barbados was included in a special 16-member group labelled Developed non-OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) states. When it came to human development Barbados was no longer a “developing country”.
In an explanatory note, the UN Development Programme pointed out that the classifications were based on country standings in the Human Development Index (HDI), a widely read tool of measurement that relies on achievements in health, education, income, equality and other factors.
Because Barbados, ranked 42nd out of the 169 states included in the Index and had a very high level of human development, it had earned the “developed” country label.
“Countries in the very high HDI category . . . are referred to as developed, and countries not in this group are referred to as developing,” was the way it was put. “The terms are used for convenience only, to distinguish countries that have attained the highest HDI levels.”
Among Barbadians in the US there was mixed reaction to the label.
“I think it shows how successful we have been in improving the quality of people’s lives,” asserted a proud Bajan-New Yorker. “It’s deserved and something of which to be proud.”
But a fellow national wasn’t quite sure that it was of great significance.
“It doesn’t mean much to me,” said a somewhat skeptical Washingtonian. “At the end of the day the island remains what it was yesterday and the day before that.”
Still, the question remains: How come it has reached that status?
The answer lies in the island’s investment in its people’s health, education and general well-being during the past 50 years.
Take life expectancy.
Someone born in Barbados between 1950-55 could expect to live to age 57. Today, the life span is almost 78 years.
Back in the 1950s, Canada’s was 69 years, a difference of 12 years, and the US 68 years, a gap of at least 11 years. By 2010, the gap had shrunk dramatically, as Canada’s life expectancy stands at 81 years; and America’s at 79.6 years.
Two key factors have contributed to the longevity. Barbados’ per capita expenditure on health, estimated at US$1 263 in 2007 was among the highest in the Western Hemisphere and the introduction and access to medication through the publicly financed drug scheme have made a substantial difference.
When it comes to education, Barbados is an excellent example of global trends. An average person over the age of 15 years in 1960 had about seven years of schooling in Barbados but today almost 60 per cent of Bajans over the age of 25 years have had at least a secondary school education, compared with 46 per cent in Italy and 58 per cent in Britain. Adult illiteracy in Barbados is practically non-existent.
“Literacy and years of schooling reflect access to education (or lack of it) by people who are adults today,” stated the UN.
Clearly, then, Barbados continues to reap rewards from the elimination of secondary school fees in the early 1960s, expanded access to tertiary level education at taxpayers’ expense and the construction of more schools by successive governments.
But there is a price Barbados may have to pay for the “developed” country label. The World Bank has already graduated the island, limiting Barbados’ ability to borrow to the delivery of HIV/AIDS services.
At the Inter-American Development Bank, the island shouldn’t be caught off-guard if the argument for graduation of Barbados picks up steam.
“Right now the US has been in the forefront of efforts to have a graduation policy at the IDB, something the bank has resisted. Washington feels countries like Barbados shouldn’t be able to borrow and abstains when loan applications are being considered for Barbados by the senior management and the board,” said a highly placed source.
In essence, then, while Barbadians may feel proud of their country’s progress, it may prove costly.
