The Social Progress Index: A holistic measure of progres

From the May 28, 2015 Full Text Report

The Social Progress Index: A holistic measure of progress
Source: Deloitte

On 9 April, the 2015 Social Progress Index launched – it measures the social and environmental outcomes for 133 countries, covering 94% of the world’s population.

As a complement to economic measures such as GDP, the Social Progress Index provides a more holistic measure of country performance and helps to drive real and sustainable growth that is important for business and vital for building a prosperous society.

How did your country do?

[Bread for the World Report] The Push Up Decade: CAADP at 10

Excerpts from the report

The 2007-2008 food price crisis was a wake-up call for the international community, reigniting the discussion about the need to refocus attention on agricultural development. In sub-Saharan Africa, however, member governments of the African Union (AU) had already been grappling with the issue for several years. In 2001, AU members agreed to establish a process to help spur economic growth and political transformation on the continent. The majority of poor people in Africa— approximately 75 percent—live in rural areas and depend on
agriculture for their livelihood.1 Yet between 1995 and 2003, most African countries spent very little public money on agriculture—well below 1 percent of their Gross Domestic Products (GDP).2

Realizing this contradiction, the AU’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) launched the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP). African heads of state met in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2003, and agreed in the Maputo Declaration both to begin devoting 10 percent of their national budgets to agriculture by 2008, and to set a goal of achieving an average annual growth rate of 6 percent in the agricultural sector by 2015.3 Nonetheless, donor funding for agriculture was very limited until 2009.

CAADP, an ambitious and comprehensive vision for agricultural reform in Africa, is an example of how initiatives with effective local ownership are making strides toward the U.N. Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

…

A good example of what is possible is Tanzania, whose economy has been growing steadily over the past 10 years. On average, the economy expanded by 6.9 percent a year. Five sectors were the source of almost 60 percent of Tanzania’s economic growth between 2008 and 2012:

• CommunicationGDPalmostdoubledinlessthanfour years, growing on average more than 20 percent a year.
• Banking and financial services, which has expandedby 11 percent a year since 2008.
• Retail trade, which increased by almost 40 percentbetween 2008 and 2012.
• Construction,withaverageannualgrowthof9percentover the same period.
• Manufacturing, which grew by 8.4 percent annuallyduring the past four years.Agriculture also contributed to Tanzania’s economic growth, but this was a given because it makes up a significant share of GDP, about 25 percent. In fact, during the period 2008-2012, agriculture’s growth rate was consistently below the overall economic growth rate.

…

Nutrition: Investing in nutrition is extremely cost-effective yet critically underfunded. In fact, of the “10 best buys in development” identified by a group of top economists, five are nutrition interventions.15 But although relatively simple, very affordable interventions to treat malnutrition are available, nutrition remains the “forgotten MDG.” Both overseas development assistance for nutrition, and national budget allocations have been very low.

Since 2009, the United States has worked through its global food security initiative, Feed the Future, to emphasize the urgent need to improve nutrition in the “1,000 Days” window between pregnancy and age 2.16 Because malnutrition in this critical age group causes irreversible physical and cognitive damage, countries with a high proportion of malnourished babies and toddlers pay the price in diminished productivity and economic growth. On the other hand, research shows that $1 invested in nutrition generates as much as $138 in better health and increased productivity.17 In sub-Saharan Africa, an estimated 41 percent of all children younger than 5 are malnourished.18 It is the only world region where the number of child deaths is increasing, and the only one expected to see further increases in food insecurity and absolute poverty.19

…

In spite of the currently tight budget climate, the United States and other development partners should not back off. Rather, they should press forward to support and help strengthen county-led initiatives such as CAADP. As the African Union prepares for the January 2014 African Union summit, which marks the start of “the Year of Agriculture in Africa,” there is real opportunity for this renewed commitment to have an impact on hunger. On July 1, 2013, African heads of state and government of AU Member States, together with representatives of international organizations, civil society organizations, the private sector, cooperatives, farmers, youths, academia, and other partners unanimously adopted a Declaration to End Hunger in Africa by 2025. This High Level Meeting, Renewed Partnership for a Unified Approach to End Hunger in Africa by 2025 within the CAADP Framework, took place at the initiative of the African Union, FAO, and the Lula Institute along with a broad range of non-state actors.22 With this renewed commitment to end hunger, African countries still have a chance to fulfill their Maputo commitments since that deadline coincides with the MDG deadline, two years away in 2015.

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• Ten Years of Transforming Agriculture in Africa (drbausman.wordpress.com)
• Zambia agro-sector given $31.5 million (daily-mail.co.zm)
• African leaders to tackle malnutrition in Niger forum (nation.co.ke)
• Sub Saharan Africa to Meet Only 25% of Food Demand by 2030-gap Report Reveals (modernghana.com)
• 4 Things the FAO says nations must do to reach global hunger MDG by 2015 (one.org)
• Africa Land Grab Unacceptable (developmentpublications2011.wordpress.com)
• Global hunger down, but millions still chronically hungry / 842 million people undernourished in 2011-13 – Developing countries make progress but more efforts needed to reach MDG target (appablog.wordpress.com)
• Poor Numbers: How We Are Misled by African Development Statistics (independentsciencenews.org)
• Governments in Africa fail to reduce poverty despite economic progress (irishtimes.com)
• Half of population face malnutrition in Madagascar (vancouverdesi.com)