Jeffrey D. Sachs, in his article titled Economics of Happiness, writes, “In the US, GNP has risen sharply in the past 40 years, but happiness has not. Instead, single-minded pursuit of GNP has led to great inequalities of wealth and power, fueled the growth of a vast underclass, trapped millions of children in poverty and caused serious environmental degradation”. This can be corroborated with the recent Wall Street Protests that speak volumes about the gloomy social condition of the US. So much so that a time series data analysis shows how the rich-poor divide has widen in the county and how the economic policies (that eventually escalated the economic growth) were always inclined towards the richest 1% of the population. Today, America is one of the riskiest nations with a high intentional homicide rate (4.8, more than a country like Bangladesh) and crime rate (the national crime rate was 3466 crimes per 100,000 residents as of 2009). The same goes for Norway. Norway boasts of having the world second highest per capita income ($84,144 per year) and tops the UNDP’s Human Development Score card. But it again fails to defend its reputation on the Happy Planet Index (wherein it ranks 88). Norway’s government is struggling with an increasing use of weapons during thefts & robberies and also an increasing crime rate.
One country that is trying to desist from the GDP obsession and promote Gross National Happiness is Bhutan. The country is trying to achieve overall happiness by adopting policies that promote culture, mental health, community development and social growth. Also, the nations that top the Happy Planet Index do not necessarily have very impressive economic variables. One such nation is Costa Rica. It has a per capita income of just $7,701, but has one of the highest life satisfaction rates and one of the longest life expectancy rates in world. Similarly, Cuba scores poorly on HDI and has merely $5,565 per year as per capita income, but fares better than the crony capitalists of the world. The intentional homicide rate is lower than the richest countries, the Gini Coefficent is better than many developed countries and life expectancy rates are better than US. Costa Rica’s rising education levels allow it to rank higher than US in the World Economic Forum gender gap index. Even the Environmental Performance Index ranks Costa Rica significantly better than other developed nations.
A disaster (like the recent recession) does provides avenues for economic development, but it isn’t a meaningful end in itself. Most countries that try to achieve high growth rates at the cost of social well-being fail to create an ambience for holistic social development – and revolts going on across the developed world substantiate this. It’s imperative for nations to reconsider how they calculate, or even benchmark overall prosperity.
One country that is trying to desist from the GDP obsession and promote Gross National Happiness is Bhutan. The country is trying to achieve overall happiness by adopting policies that promote culture, mental health, community development and social growth. Also, the nations that top the Happy Planet Index do not necessarily have very impressive economic variables. One such nation is Costa Rica. It has a per capita income of just $7,701, but has one of the highest life satisfaction rates and one of the longest life expectancy rates in world. Similarly, Cuba scores poorly on HDI and has merely $5,565 per year as per capita income, but fares better than the crony capitalists of the world. The intentional homicide rate is lower than the richest countries, the Gini Coefficent is better than many developed countries and life expectancy rates are better than US. Costa Rica’s rising education levels allow it to rank higher than US in the World Economic Forum gender gap index. Even the Environmental Performance Index ranks Costa Rica significantly better than other developed nations.
A disaster (like the recent recession) does provides avenues for economic development, but it isn’t a meaningful end in itself. Most countries that try to achieve high growth rates at the cost of social well-being fail to create an ambience for holistic social development – and revolts going on across the developed world substantiate this. It’s imperative for nations to reconsider how they calculate, or even benchmark overall prosperity.
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
