UN Report: 90% Countries See Decline in Human Development

Facts

According to a UN report published on Thurs., human development has declined globally two years in a row for the first time in 32 years, with nine out of 10 countries having fallen on the UN's Human Development Index (HDI).
The HDI was launched in 1990 to look beyond GDP as a measure of well-being and measures a nation's health, education, and standard of living. The latest report signals that human development has fallen back to 2016 levels.
Leading the list of causes cited in the report for this reversal in global development are: COVID, the war in Ukraine, and the impact of climate change.
Switzerland ranks number one this year with a life expectancy of 84 years, an average of 16.5 years spent in education, and a median salary of $66k. At the bottom of the list is South Sudan, where the life expectancy is 55, people spend only 5.5 years in school on average and earn $768 a year.
The most dramatic setbacks are seen in life expectancy across the board in all 191 countries included in the index, including the US which has seen a drop in average life expectancy from 79 years to 76.1 years.
The report also warns that global levels of trust are the lowest on record and that increased hostility prevents nations from taking the collective action needed to address the multiple crises the world is facing.

Narrative A, as provided by Voa. This year's report is alarming, showing an unprecedented array of crises that has set human progress back five years. The findings highlight the dire need for a collective effort to address the current hardships, however, with fostering levels of global mistrust and polarization, this isn't likely.
Narrative B, as provided by US News. While this report is certainly worrisome, it does represent opportunities for improvement in education, health, and technology sectors. The ripple effects of the pandemic are likely to continue, and similar reports should be expected, however, we can't lose sight of the global progress of the past decades. With a renewed sense of solidarity, we can get back on track.