Human development in the world has never progressed so little for 35 years, according to the UNDP report. Six out of ten people hope that artificial intelligence will create new job possibilities, the same source reveals.
Globally, the UNDP 2025 human development report underlines a disturbing trend in the slowdown in progress.
“The sequelae of the crises of 2020-2021 remain visible, compromising advances in many countries,” said the document.
Inequalities are increasing, and the digital fracture may create new forms of marginalization. The poorest regions, especially in sub -Saharan Africa and South Asia, are struggling to maintain their level of human development. Regional disparities are marked, with large differences between high -income countries and those with low income. The report highlights increasing inequalities in terms of access to health care, education and technology.
“In many regions, the pandemic has worsened existing differences, strengthening the vulnerability of marginalized populations,” said the UNDP.
“For decades, we have been on the right track to reach a very high level of human development by 2030, but this slowdown weighs a very real threat to global progress,” said UNDP administrator Achim Steiner.
“If the slowness of progress recorded in 2024 becomes” the new standard “, it could take several decades additional, which would make our world less safe, more divided and more vulnerable to economic and ecological shocks. Artificial intelligence (AI) is also at the heart of world debates. If it represents an opportunity for progress, it also includes risks.
“AI can strengthen inequalities if it is not ethical and inclusive,” says the report.
“While AI continues to quickly settle in many aspects of our lives, we should study its ability to promote development. New features appear almost every day and, even if AI is not a panacea, our choices can revive human development by opening new paths and offering new possibilities, ”says Steiner.
On this subject, the UNDP report presents the results of a new survey which shows that people are realistic but remain optimistic about the changes that AI can make. Thus, half of the people interviewed in the world believe that their work could be automated. An even greater part-six out of ten-expects the AI to have positive benefits on their employment and offers possibilities in professions that may not exist today. Only 13% of respondents fear that the development of AI will cause job cuts.
On the other hand, in countries with low or average HDI, 70% of those questioned expect the AI to increase their productivity, and two thirds plan to use this technology in education, health or labor during the coming year. The document calls on countries to guarantee a fair digital transition, so that the profits from technology benefit everyone.
“If good policies are adopted by focusing on individuals, AI can become a formidable bridge towards knowledge, skills and new ideas useful to everyone, whether one is a farmer or head of a small business,” said Pedro Conceição, director of the Office of the Human Development of the UNDP.
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