Norway ranked number one in the Human Development Index, followed by Switzerland, and then Ireland. Two of Luxembourg's neighbours performed better, with Germany scoring 4th and Belgium 17th - France, however ranked 26th, five spots below the Grand Duchy. The country found at the bottom of the ranking, in the 189th spot, is Niger.
Life expectancy at birth in Luxembourg is calculated at 82.1 years. The UN publishes its Human Development Report each year and examines the state of development in all 189 recognised states. The index follows progress in three areas, namely life expectancy and health, access to knowledge, and decent standard of living. Published under the headline of "Beyond income, beyond averages, beyond today: Inequalities in human development in the 21st century", the report aims to explore where countries require improvement in daily inequalities.
Luxembourg's index in 2018 was calculated at 0.909, which the report describes as corresponding to a high development rate. The OECD average is lower at 0.89. Luxembourg has also improved by 15% since 1990, with life expectancy rising by 6.9 years. The expected years of schooling average has risen by 3.4 years, and finally, the gross national income per capita has also improved by 9% in the 28-year period.
However, the Human Development Index does mask the inequalities in the distribution of development. Taking this point into consideration, Luxembourg would drop by 10%. Both Austria and Iceland, two countries that the report deems comparable with Luxembourg, would only drop by a respective 8 and 6% in comparison.
Income inequality is one area that stands out in particular, calculated at 16.6% in Luxembourg. Nevertheless, this is 3% below the OECD average. In terms of educational inequality, Luxembourg scores the same as the OECD average at 8%.
Broadly, the report reveals that Luxembourg must make improvements in the domain of the socio-economic emancipation of women. Another area outlined by the report as requiring improvement is the domain of sustainability and social sustainability.
