BURLINGTON, Vt. — On Wednesday, the World Bank released its latest installment of the“Human Capital Index,” a country-by-country ranking that translates shortfalls in health and education into potential productivity losses at a national level. The 2020 version of the index describes the world of human capital before COVID-19 and could offer its greatest value as a marker of what has been lost.
The World Bank collected and analyzed data from each country through March 2020, just as the pandemic was gathering steam, and well before its full implications for health and social services were felt. That is especially true in low- and middle-income countries, which were generally spared from the initial wave of infections, but many of which are now among the hardest hit, with the harshest implications for vulnerable populations.
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a 12% drop in global employment, said World Bank President David Malpass, citing the International Labour Organization. Coupled with decreases in global remittances, that means that income levels have fallen sharply in many of the bank’s client countries, he told reporters ahead of the report’s release.
About the author
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
