Economics

What is Human Capital and how well are nations utilizing it?



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Human capital is the pile of knowledge, personality attributes, and creativity present in a person which could lead to betterment of economy in the long run. Abundant talent prevails in this world, and when it is brought to use, lifestyles can be easier, and nations can develop better. It is the uniqueness and creativity of ideas, that help in innovations. However, many-a-times, potential in a person is not realized due to problems like inequality or the belief of policymakers that investment in highly skilled labor can only bring growth.

World Economic Forum releases the Human Capital Index annually to assess learning and employment outcomes in every country, on a scale which ranges from 0 to 100, with 0 being the worst score and 100 the best. In 2017, the report is released on the principle that all people should be offered equal opportunity to develop their talents. Subsequently, the country’s talents resources are measured, so the governments could pay attention into delivering results from it. The Index ranked countries after   assessing the level to which countries have utilized their human capital for profit of the economy and individuals’ themselves.

European nations have grabbed the first three ranks, with Norway being at the top having a score of 77.12. It is followed by Finland and Switzerland with a score of 77.07 and 76.48, respectively. The much well-developed and one of the most powerful economy, United States of America did not lag behind so much as well. The country was ranked fourth in the index with a score of 74.84.

Of the developing countries in BRICS, Russia was the best performer with a score of 72.16. On the other hand, India might be an emerging economy, but when it comes to bringing use of the potential in individuals, the county does not fare well. It performed the worst among BRICS nations and had a score of just 55.29.


At the bottom of the Index were African nations: Senegal, Mauritania and Yemen, with scores of 43.33, 41.19 and 35.48, respectively.

The table provides information on how each country scores on the Human Capital Index.

Rank Country Score
1 Norway 77.12
2 Finland 77.07
3 Switzerland 76.48
4 United States of America 74.84
5 Denmark 74.4
6 Germany 74.3
7 New Zealand 74.14
8 Sweden 73.95
9 Slovenia 73.33
10 Austria 73.29
11 Singapore 73.28
12 Estonia 73.13
13 Netherlands 73.07
14 Canada 73.06
15 Belgium 72.46
16 Russia 72.16
17 Japan 72.05
18 Israel 71.75
19 Ireland 71.67
20 Australia 71.56
21 Iceland 71.44
22 Czech Republic 71.41
23 United Kingdom 71.31
24 Ukraine 71.27
25 Lithuania 70.81
26 France 69.94
27 South Korea 69.88
28 Latvia 69.85
29 Kazakhstan 69.78
30 Luxembourg 69.61
31 Poland 69.61
32 Bulgaria 68.49
33 Malaysia 68.29
34 China 67.72
35 Italy 67.23
36 Slovakia 67.14
37 Croatia 66.81
38 Cyprus 66.43
39 Hungary 66.4
40 Thailand 66.15
41 Malta 66.13
42 Romania 66.12
43 Portugal 65.7
44 Spain 65.6
45 United Arab Emirates 65.48
46 Kyrgyzstan 65.14
47 Bahrain 64.98
48 Greece 64.68
49 Armenia 64.46
50 Philippines 64.36
51 Mongolia 64.35
52 Argentina 64.34
53 Chile 64.22
54 Bolivia 64.06
55 Qatar 63.97
56 Panama 63.85
57 Tajikistan 63.79
58 Brunei Darussalam 62.82
59 Trinidad and Tobago 62.54
60 Serbia 62.5
61 Costa Rica 62.38
62 Moldova 62.29
63 Uruguay 62.26
64 Vietnam 62.19
65 Indonesia 62.19
66 Peru 62.17
67 Macedonia 61.82
68 Colombia 61.8
69 Mexico 61.25
70 Sri Lanka 61.19
71 Rwanda 61.06
72 Ghana 61.01
73 Cameroon 60.76
74 Mauritius 60.34
75 Turkey 60.33
76 Ecuador 59.87
77 Brazil 59.73
78 Kenya 59.48
79 Barbados 59.21
80 Zambia 59.08
81 Uganda 58.73
82 Saudi Arabia 58.52
83 Jamaica 58.39
84 Laos 58.36
85 Albania 58.22
86 Jordan 58.15
87 South Africa 58.09
88 Guyana 58.02
89 Myanmar 57.67
90 Paraguay 57.65
91 Botswana 57.56
92 Cambodia 57.28
93 Dominican Republic 57.12
94 Venezuela 56.88
95 El Salvador 56.36
96 Kuwait 56.08
97 Egypt 55.99
98 Nepal 55.92
99 Namibia 55.86
100 Guatemala 55.83
101 Honduras 55.77
102 Burundi 55.45
103 India 55.29
104 Iran 54.97
105 Benin 54.58
106 Tanzania 53.58
107 Gabon 53.37
108 Nicaragua 53.11
109 Malawi 52.32
110 Madagascar 51.96
111 Bangladesh 51.75
112 Algeria 51.51
113 Côte d’Ivoire 51.12
114 Nigeria 51.06
115 Tunisia 50.76
116 Mozambique 50.18
117 Sierra Leone 49.49
118 Morocco 49.47
119 Gambia 48.94
120 Liberia 48.86
121 Guinea 48.01
122 Chad 47.53
123 Swaziland 47.15
124 Lesotho 46.88
125 Pakistan 46.34
126 Mali 46.02
127 Ethiopia 44.44
128 Senegal 43.33
129 Mauritania 41.19
130 Yemen 35.48

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