Mahbub ul Haq
Topic: Human Development: Concept, Approaches and Measurement · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 3 "Human Development"
Meaning
Mahbub ul Haq (1934-1998) was a Pakistani economist who introduced the concept of human development. To him, development meant enlarging people's choices so that they could lead long, healthy and meaningful lives with dignity. He created the Human Development Index (HDI) in 1990. The HDI ranks countries on health, education and access to resources. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has published his Human Development Report every year since 1990.
Example
Because of Haq's idea, countries are now ranked on people's lives and not just on income. In the Human Development Report 2025, Iceland ranked first and India ranked 130 out of 193, with an HDI of about 0.685 (data for 2023).
Don't confuse with
- Amartya Sen: Sen worked with Haq on the early reports and is linked with the capability approach. Haq created the HDI.