Human Development Index: Comparative Development Timeline

This report presents a comparative analysis of countries based on their 2023 Human Development Index (HDI) values. For each country, we estimate the year in which the world’s most developed country at that time achieved a comparable HDI level. This provides a historical context to current development levels.

Methodology

  1. Current HDI Data: The latest HDI values for 2023 were extracted from the UNDP Human Development Reports website.
  2. Historical HDI Trends: Historical HDI data for the world’s most developed countries (primarily Norway and Iceland in recent decades) was gathered from the UNDP’s statistical annex for HDI trends (1990-2023).
  3. Pre-1990 Estimation: Since official HDI data is primarily available from 1990 onwards, we estimated HDI values for the world’s leading countries prior to 1990 based on general historical development trends. These estimations are approximate and serve to provide a broader historical context.
  4. Equivalent Year Calculation: For each country’s 2023 HDI, we interpolated within our historical HDI dataset to find the year when the world’s most developed country reached that specific HDI value. If a country’s 2023 HDI is higher than the highest historical HDI recorded (Iceland’s 0.972 in 2023), the equivalent year is set to 2023. If a country’s HDI is lower than the lowest estimated historical HDI, an earlier year is extrapolated.

Results

The following table lists countries ordered by their 2023 HDI, along with the estimated year when the world’s most developed country had a comparable HDI.

Rank Country HDI_2023 Equivalent_Year
1 Iceland 0.972 2023
2 Norway 0.97 2022
3 Switzerland 0.97 2022
4 Denmark 0.962 2016
5 Germany 0.959 2015
6 Sweden 0.959 2015
7 Australia 0.958 2014
8 Hong Kong, China (SAR) 0.955 2013
9 Netherlands 0.955 2013
10 Belgium 0.951 2011
11 Ireland 0.949 2010
12 Finland 0.948 2010
13 United Kingdom 0.946 2009
14 Singapore 0.946 2009
15 United Arab Emirates 0.94 2006
16 Canada 0.939 2006
17 United States 0.938 2005
18 New Zealand 0.938 2005
19 Liechtenstein 0.938 2005
20 Korea (Republic of) 0.937 2005
21 Slovenia 0.931 2002
22 Austria 0.93 2002
23 Japan 0.925 2000
24 Malta 0.924 2000
25 Luxembourg 0.922 1999
26 France 0.92 1999
27 Israel 0.919 1999
28 Spain 0.918 1999
29 Italy 0.915 1998
30 San Marino 0.915 1998
31 Czechia 0.915 1998
32 Cyprus 0.913 1998
33 Andorra 0.913 1998
34 Greece 0.908 1997
35 Poland 0.906 1997
36 Estonia 0.905 1997
37 Saudi Arabia 0.9 1996
38 Bahrain 0.899 1996
39 Lithuania 0.895 1995
40 Portugal 0.89 1995
41 Latvia 0.889 1994
42 Croatia 0.889 1994
43 Qatar 0.886 1994
44 Slovakia 0.88 1993
45 Chile 0.878 1993
46 Hungary 0.87 1992
47 Argentina 0.865 1991
48 Uruguay 0.862 1990
49 Montenegro 0.862 1990
50 Oman 0.858 1990
51 Türkiye 0.853 1989
52 Kuwait 0.852 1989
53 Antigua and Barbuda 0.851 1989
54 Seychelles 0.848 1988
55 Bulgaria 0.845 1988
56 Romania 0.845 1988
57 Georgia 0.844 1987
58 Saint Kitts and Nevis 0.84 1987
59 Panama 0.839 1986
60 Brunei Darussalam 0.837 1986
61 Kazakhstan 0.837 1986
62 Serbia 0.833 1985
63 Costa Rica 0.833 1985
64 Russian Federation 0.832 1985
65 Belarus 0.824 1984
66 Bahamas 0.82 1983
67 Malaysia 0.819 1983
68 North Macedonia 0.815 1982
69 Barbados 0.811 1981
70 Armenia 0.811 1981
71 Albania 0.81 1981
72 Trinidad and Tobago 0.807 1981
73 Mauritius 0.806 1981
74 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.804 1980
75 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 0.799 1979
76 Thailand 0.798 1979
77 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.798 1979
78 China 0.797 1979
79 Peru 0.794 1978
80 Grenada 0.791 1978
81 Azerbaijan 0.789 1977
82 Mexico 0.789 1977
83 Colombia 0.788 1977
84 Palau 0.786 1977
85 Brazil 0.786 1977
86 Moldova (Republic of) 0.785 1977
87 Ukraine 0.779 1975
88 Ecuador 0.777 1975
89 Guyana 0.776 1975
90 Dominican Republic 0.776 1975
91 Sri Lanka 0.776 1975
92 Tonga 0.769 1973
93 Viet Nam 0.766 1973
94 Maldives 0.766 1973
95 Turkmenistan 0.764 1972
96 Algeria 0.763 1972
97 Cuba 0.762 1972
98 Dominica 0.761 1972
99 Paraguay 0.756 1971
100 Egypt 0.754 1970
101 Jordan 0.754 1970
102 Lebanon 0.752 1970
103 Saint Lucia 0.748 1969
104 Mongolia 0.747 1969
105 Tunisia 0.746 1969
106 South Africa 0.741 1968
107 Uzbekistan 0.74 1968
108 Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 0.733 1966
109 Marshall Islands 0.733 1966
110 Gabon 0.733 1966
111 Botswana 0.731 1966
112 Fiji 0.731 1966
113 Indonesia 0.728 1965
114 Suriname 0.722 1964
115 Libya 0.721 1964
116 Belize 0.721 1964
117 Kyrgyzstan 0.72 1964
118 Jamaica 0.72 1964
119 Philippines 0.72 1964
120 Morocco 0.71 1962
121 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 0.709 1961
122 Samoa 0.708 1961
123 Nicaragua 0.706 1961
124 Nauru 0.703 1960
125 Bhutan 0.698 1959
126 Eswatini (Kingdom of) 0.695 1959
127 Iraq 0.695 1959
128 Tajikistan 0.691 1958
129 Tuvalu 0.689 1957
130 India 0.685 1957
131 Bangladesh 0.685 1957
132 El Salvador 0.678 1955
133 Palestine, State of 0.674 1954
134 Equatorial Guinea 0.674 1954
135 Cabo Verde 0.668 1953
136 Namibia 0.665 1953
137 Guatemala 0.662 1952
138 Congo 0.649 1949
139 Honduras 0.645 1949
140 Kiribati 0.644 1949
141 Sao Tome and Principe 0.637 1947
142 Timor-Leste 0.634 1947
143 Kenya 0.628 1946
144 Ghana 0.628 1946
145 Nepal 0.622 1945
146 Vanuatu 0.621 1945
147 Lao People’s Democratic Republic 0.617 1944
148 Angola 0.616 1944
149 Micronesia (Federated States of) 0.615 1944
150 Myanmar 0.609 1943
151 Cambodia 0.606 1942
152 Comoros 0.603 1942
153 Zimbabwe 0.598 1941
154 Zambia 0.595 1940
155 Cameroon 0.588 1939
156 Solomon Islands 0.584 1939
157 Côte d’Ivoire 0.582 1938
158 Uganda 0.582 1938
159 Rwanda 0.578 1938
160 Papua New Guinea 0.576 1937
161 Togo 0.571 1936
162 Syrian Arab Republic 0.564 1935
163 Mauritania 0.563 1935
164 Nigeria 0.56 1935
165 Tanzania (United Republic of) 0.555 1934
166 Haiti 0.554 1934
167 Lesotho 0.55 1933
168 Pakistan 0.544 1932
169 Senegal 0.53 1930
170 Gambia 0.524 1929
171 Congo (Democratic Republic of the) 0.522 1928
172 Malawi 0.517 1927
173 Benin 0.515 1927
174 Guinea-Bissau 0.514 1927
175 Djibouti 0.513 1927
176 Sudan 0.511 1926
177 Liberia 0.51 1926
178 Eritrea 0.503 1925
179 Guinea 0.5 1925
180 Ethiopia 0.497 1924
181 Afghanistan 0.496 1924
182 Mozambique 0.493 1923
183 Madagascar 0.487 1922
184 Yemen 0.47 1920
185 Sierra Leone 0.467 1919
186 Burkina Faso 0.459 1918
187 Burundi 0.439 1914
188 Niger 0.419 1911
189 Mali 0.419 1911
190 Chad 0.416 1911
191 Central African Republic 0.414 1910
192 Somalia 0.404 1909
193 South Sudan 0.388 1906

Observations and Conclusion

This analysis provides a unique perspective on global development by contextualizing each country’s current HDI within the historical progress of the world’s most developed nations. It highlights the significant strides made in human development over time, as even countries with lower current HDI values often correspond to development levels achieved by leading nations decades or even a century ago.

This comparative timeline underscores the dynamic nature of human development and the varying paces of progress across the globe. While some nations have reached unprecedented levels of development, others are still striving to achieve benchmarks set by leading countries in the past. This historical lens can inform development strategies and foster a deeper understanding of global disparities.