Development indicators

• Literacy rate - The percentage of adults who can read and write 


  Measure of= Social- education

  effect on development= lower

  Limitation= 1. this can be hard to measure in LIC's due to lack of monitoring

  2. Conflict zones and squatter settlements are difficult areas to measure literacy rates
• Life expectancy - the average number of years a person can expect to live to 


  Measure of social- health

  Effect on development the lower the age, the lower the development

  Limitations=

  1. Data is not always reliable
  2. It can be misleading in countries with a very high rate of infant mortality as people who survive infancy may live longer than expected
• People per doctor- this measures the average number of people that could be seen by a doctor at any one time 


  Measure of social / health / education

  effect on development= The lower the number of doctors, the lower the level of health care, but also a lack of suitable education to train people

  Limitations=

  1. More people are seeking medical help and advice via mobile phones/ web chat- this is not included in the data
• Birth rate - The number of live births per 1,000 of the total population in one year 


  measure of social- women's rights

  effect on development= the lower the birth rate, the higher the development. Women have access to better health care

  Limitations=

  1.some countries may have low birth rates but quite poor, this is due to political decisions to invest more money in healthcare over other sectors

  2.birth control policies can distort this as a measure of overall development
• Infant mortality rate- the number of children that do not survive to their first birthday per 1,000 babies born 


  measure of social- health

  effect on development- the higher the number the lower the development

  limitations=

  1. not all the deaths of children are reported, especially in LIC's and remote regions of NEE's, meaning the true rates may be even higher
• Death rate - the number of deaths per 1,000 of the country's population in a year 


  measure of social- health

  effect on development= the lower the number, the higher the development

  limitations=

  1. by comparison, death rate is a less reliable measure of development than birth rate
  2. birth rates can be high in some LIC's due to poverty but also high in HIC's where many people die of old age.
• Access to safe water- the percentage of people who have access to safe drinking water 


  measure of social- health

  effect on development= higher

  limitations=

  1. data collections in LIC's is not likely to be accurate and so official figures can underestimate the issue
  2. people may technically have access, but high costs force people to use unsafe water
  3. leaking pipes and natural disasters may deprive people of piped water