Muhammad Ahsan*

 

This paper is an attempt to analyse the notion of ‘human development’ in its historical and contemporary perspectives. This notion was presented by the late Mahbub ul Haq at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1990. It is based on the assumption that income does not constitute the entirety of a person’s life in society and, therefore, per capita income alone is not enough to measure human progress. The outcome of the discussion reflects that in contrast to the common belief that it is a new and innovative approach to improve the quality of human life, in reality, this is neither a new concept nor is the approach to tackle the development process a unique one. The only uniqueness of this concept is that it has been reinvented after more than fourteen centuries. The statistical analysis of the state of the contemporary Muslim World with regard to human development reflects that overall human development ranks of both high and low-income Muslim countries are significantly lower as compared to respective Non-Muslim countries. The same is also true for various components of human development, e.g., education, human security, human deprivation and human capital. At the dawn of the twenty-first century, this situation is a serious challenge for Muslim countries and demands urgent measures to overcome the problem of human under-development.

 
he UNDP first Human Development Report 1990 was the brainchild of the late Mahbub ul Haq.[1] Today, more than a decade after the publication, this conceptual framework has gained a special place at global level, exerting enormous influence on decision-makers, researchers, academicians and ordinary citizens. Amartya Sen[2] also contributed to the development of this framework. He underlined the fact that achieving a better life has more to do with nurturing and expanding human potentialities and capabilities than constantly promoting consumption of more goods and services.[3] This paper analyses the situation of human development in the Muslim World in the historical and contemporary perspectives of human development. The statistical analysis of the contemporary state of human development of the Muslim World is based mainly on UNDP’s recent reports where an effort is made to present a comparative picture of high and low-income Muslim and Non-Muslim countries. Here, this division of countries which is based on religion is not aimed at establishing two blocs of the world on the basis of faith; rather it attempts to highlight the widespread human under-development across the Muslim World, which is an important cause of global insecurity and instability. The discussion highlights the fact that human development is possible, and not merely an illusion – the prospects for human development lie in adopting various measures in specific areas. Therefore, concrete efforts are required in this regard to bring about positive change.

The Concept of Human Development

            Before proceeding to further analysis, it is important to discuss the concept of human development briefly. Although it can be argued that in its World Development Report 1980, the World Bank was the first institution to use the term ‘human development’[4], the concept was adopted by the UNDP in 1990 when it published its first global report based on this concept.[5] The report argued that: ‘Human development is a process of enlarging people’s choices. The most critical of these wide-ranging choices are to live a long and healthy life, to be educated and to have access to resources needed for a decent standard of living. Additional choices include political freedom, guaranteed human rights and personal self-respect.’[6] While highlighting the link between economic growth and human development, UNDP emphasised that ‘if the distribution of income is unequal and if social expenditures are low (Pakistan and Nigeria) or distributed unevenly (Brazil), human development may not improve much, despite rapid GNP growth.’[7] The Human Development Report 1995, supports this concept as follows: 

The concept of human development is much broader than the conventional theories of economic development. Economic growth models deal with expanding GNP rather than enhancing the quality of human lives. Human resources development treats human beings primarily as an input in the production process – a means rather than an end. Welfare approaches look at human beings as beneficiaries and not as agents of change in the development process. The basic-need approach focuses on providing material goods and services to deprived population groups rather than on enlarging human choices in all fields.

 

Human development, by contrast, brings together the production and distribution of commodities and the expansion and use of human capabilities. Encompassing these earlier concerns, human development goes beyond them. It analyses all issues in society – whether economic growth, trade, employment, political freedom or cultural values – from the perspective of people. It thus focuses on enlarging human choices – and it applies equally to developing and industrial countries.[8] 

            The recent Human Development Report 2001 argues that: ‘Human Development is about much more than the rise or fall of national incomes. It is about creating an environment in which people can develop their full potential and lead productive, creative lives in accord with their needs and interests. People are the real wealth of nations. Development is thus about expanding the choices people have to lead lives that they value. And it is thus about much more than economic growth, which is only a means – if a very important one – of enlarging people’s choices. Fundamental to enlarging these choices is building human capabilities – the range of things that people can do or be in life. The most basic capabilities for human development are to lead long and healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, to have access to the resources needed for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in community life. Without these, many choices are simply not available, and many opportunities in life remain inaccessible.’[9]

It is noteworthy that since 1990, when the first human development report was published by the UNDP, human development has been measured in terms of Human Development Index (HDI). The invention of the HDI is based on various efforts made in the past.[10] ‘The HDI is a composite of three ingredients: longevity, knowledge and standard of living. Longevity is measured by life expectancy at birth. Knowledge is measured by a combination of adult literacy (two-third weight) and mean years of schooling (one-third weight). Standard of living is measured by purchasing power, based on real GDP per capita adjusted for the local cost of living (purchasing power parity, or PPP).’[11] ‘The HDI measures only the average national achievement, not how well it is distributed in a country.’[12] Choudhury[13] challenges the comprehension of the HDI by emphasising that it (HDI) lacks the concept of social welfare and thus it presents only a partial picture. He stressed the point of institutional change and in his opinion, rather than HDI, a Social Well-being Index (SWI) should be constructed. He argued that the stock market situation was an actual reflection of socio-economic stability in a country. Thus, as much as the stock market is stable, there will be more investment and social well-being. A careful consideration of HDI and SWI indicates that, SWI is not able to present an accurate picture of human development because here the real emphasis is on economic growth. Haq argues that economic growth is not an end but merely a means to development because this growth does not necessarily translate into human development. It is particularly true for various Muslim countries (e.g., Pakistan) where in spite of reasonable economic growth in the past few decades, its benefits have been hijacked by politically influential and wealthy people. Therefore the gap between the different social classes has widened.[14] Thus, it can safely be said that HDI is a useful tool for understanding and ordering the level of human development of different countries. It has a stronger impact on readers’ minds and attracts attention more powerfully than simply a long list of social indicators.  

Islamic Approach to Human Development

In the present discussion it is important to briefly discuss the Islamic approach to human development and its relevance to the UNDP’s approach. The Arabic word Islam simply means ‘submission’, and derives from a word ‘Silm’ meaning ‘peace.’[15] According to Muslim belief, ‘Islam is a complete code of life.’[16] ‘This is because there is no aspect of life, such as religion, economy, politics, education and health, etc., for which Islam does not provide guidance.’[17] The ‘Quran is the primary source of knowledge for Muslims.’[18] ‘One of the basic and the most important characteristics regarding the social economy and the economic system upon which the Quran repeatedly lays stress is that all means and resources through which human beings earn their livelihood are Divinely created.’[19]

In the Islamic system, human development is a purposeful activity aiming at: (i) economic development with its fair distribution of benefits, (ii) fair distribution should bring positive change in society, and, (iii) both these activities should enhance spiritual satisfaction of human beings.[20] Interestingly, this approach is similar as well as different from the UNDP’s concept of human development. Its first two points are similar to the UNDP’s approach, however, differences appears in the case of the third point. In UNDP’s approach, the component of spiritual development and satisfaction is left open and optional. In Islamic philosophy, the human being is a God made creature with its two main components, body and soul. Therefore, human development is required in both these aspects. With reference to the above mentioned first two points with regard to human development, Islam particularly emphasises on: (i) social justice, fair distribution and utilisation of resources, (ii) education for all, (iii) economic development, (iv) income and employment promotion, and, (v) in the overall context, improving the physical quality of life.[21] A brief comparison of these two approaches of human development is presented in the following Table, which highlights that the Islamic approach to human development would be incomplete without incorporating the component of spiritual development.

 

Table-1

UNDP’s and Islamic Approach to Human Development

      

UNDP’s Approach	Islamic Approach
·  Main emphasis on primary components of human development -         Basic education; -         Longer healthy life, and; -         Higher level of income. ·           Secondary components are: -     Political freedom; -     Human rights, and; -     Self-respect.	·    Emphasis on education including secular and religious education, as well as acquisition of knowledge and skills in the field of science and technology. ·      Enhancement of opportunities for income generation and health services. ·      Emphasis on human security to ensure social justice at national and international level and religio-political freedom.

      

Source:[22]

 

Human Development of Early and Medieval Muslims[23]

In Islamic teachings there is much emphasis on human development, and early Islamic history demonstrates its practicability. The first Muslim state was created on the map of the world in 622, when the Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him (PBUH) migrated from Makkah to Madinah. ‘This migration [Hijrah] later became the starting point for the Muslim Lunar calendar’.[24] After His (Prophet) migration, He observed that in contrast to Makkah’s economy, where the trade was a dominant feature, the economy of Madinah was primarily agricultural based. In that new environment, He laid the foundations of a state in which agriculture played a prime role. His ten-year rule over Madinah was a period of economic stability and human development. Under these prevailing circumstances with respect to human development, in His state administration system, four points were of key importance, i.e., i) organisation, ii) education and research, iii) land consolidation and utilisation, and, iv) cooperation and self-help. After arriving in Madinah, his first step was to conduct a population census in the city. This census established the percentage of labour-force, which was in work. It also indicated the number of people who could read and write as opposed to those who were illiterate. The census showed that the total figure of the Muslim male labour-force was 1600. He organised and developed these peoples into an efficient human capital.

In this newly created state, which was based on religion, Muslim and Non-Muslims enjoyed their full human rights and self-respect. It is appropriate to mention here that this innovative style of human administration was organised at four levels: (i) Niqabat, (ii) Erafat, (iii) Nizarat, and, (iv) Amalat. Niqabat, which was the lowest administrative unit of the state, consisted of eight families among whom one of the head of the families was its administrator. Erafat consisted of 12 Niqabats and its head was called Areef who was elected from local people and approved by the government. In addition to administrative matters, he was responsible for local branch of Bait-ul-Mal.[25] Nizarat was an intermediary administrative unit between Erafat and Amalat. Each Nizarat consisted of 24 Erafats. Many Nizarafats constituted of one Amalat which was similar to the provincial level of the government. The size of Amalat depended upon the local socio-economic situation and regional population. The chief executive of Amalat was called Amel who was directly appointed by the central government.  Although, the Amel was not the elected head of the region, the appointment was made after the consultation of the people and social heads. It needs to be emphasised here that this system was based on the need and nature of those people and therefore, during the Prophetic (PBUH) short period of government, it was established on sound footings and remained unchanged for centuries to come.

It may be noted here that with reference to Prophet’s (PBUH) teachings and political administration, similarities can be traced in His approach to human development and the UNDP’s approach. Particularly with regard to the development of human capital, he placed enormous emphasis on education and training. The first message, which He received from God, was to read and learn. Therefore, He organised a national education system and established its five sub-departments for: (i) teaching of different languages, (ii) accountancy and business administration, (iii) industrial education and training, (iv) agricultural education and research, and, (iv) defence and strategic studies. This system was based on four types of classes: (i) daily, (ii) weekly, (iii) seasonal, and, (iv) distance learning. In this educational set-up, there was more emphasis on practical aspects and agricultural research, which was an important need of the time for the purpose of human capital formation. Often these programmes were multi and inter-disciplinary in nature, where in addition to the teachers and trainers, the participants of the courses were also used to make presentations and share their experiences.

Due to the particular nature of the agro-tribal community of the Madni Muslim state, two simultaneous approaches, i.e., land consolidation and creation of cooperatives, were adopted for income generation and employment promotion. Unlike today when every one knows the importance of land consolidation, centuries ago the situation was entirely different and people were ignorant of this concept and practice. Immediately after His migration to Madinah, the Prophet (PBUH) organised the scattered cultivated land and gardens, and developed the available human capital to enhance per capita productivity. It is widely believed that the cooperative movement is a modern invention and that it was initiated by a group of 28 people in Rochdale UK in 1844.[26] However, in reality this movement was started in Madinah 1222 years before the ‘Rochdale Pioneers.’ These efforts provided strong foundations for the overall development of the quality of life.

            The strategies of human development initiated by the Prophet (PBUH) continued in the years to come. Numerous voluminous books have been written and massive research has been conducted on the development of knowledge and, science and technology in the early and medieval Islamic periods.[27] However, due to the limited space available, here the discussion is confined only to a few lines. It is noteworthy that during the period of Caliph Umar, Umro bin al-Aas (Amel of Egypt) prepared a feasibility report and maps to connect the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea by a canal. Their plan and objective was similar to the present Suez Canal. The report was presented to the Caliph but after detailed consideration and discussions the project was not approved due to national and international security reasons.[28] Although the Suez Canal was not built during that time, this deficiency was fulfilled by constructing numerous other canals. In fact, for this purpose, there was a huge department of civil engineering called Nizarat-al-Nafia. This department was employing an army of workers and in the province of Egypt alone, nearly 120,000 workers and civil engineers were engaged in digging new canals. One of the masterpieces of this department was a newly constructed Canal of Ameer ul Mo’meneen, which linked the River Nile to the Red Sea. This almost 110 Km long canal was constructed mainly for shipping purposes and was completed within six months. It may be mentioned here that the medieval age of Islamic history is particularly famous due to its human development based on prosperity and advancement in the fields of science and technology. This development was only possible due to innovative steps and solid foundations laid by earlier Muslims. They opened their doors to the rest of the world and unlike present day restrictions on the transfer of technology, trade embargo and sanctions, they were please to spread their knowledge and skill to other nations. 

The Contemporary Muslim World

At the dawn of the 21st century, out of 207 countries and territories of the world[29], 57 countries are the members of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) and are considered Islamic countries or the Muslim World.[30] According to the UN estimates, out of the total 6.13 billion population of the world, the Muslim World constitutes 21.4 per cent.[31] Similarly, out of the 103 million Km² of geographic area that covers the world, the Muslim World covers 30.51 million Km².[32] The global map indicates that the Muslim World stretches from North West Africa (Morocco) to South East Asia (Indonesia). It ranges from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean. It is further estimated that the Muslim World produces more than three-quarters of the world’s rubber and jute, two-third of its oil, two-third of all palm oil, over two-third of its spices, and half of the tin and phosphate. In addition to having a vast number of gas reserves, they also produce a large quantity of the world’s cotton, tea, coffee, wool uranium, manganese, cobalt and many other commodities and minerals.[33] Unfortunately, in spite of these obvious advantages, human under-development is dominant throughout the Muslim World. With reference to the context, it would be useful to look at a broader comparative picture of the Muslim and the Non-Muslim worlds. Table 2 indicates that with regard to the basic indicators, the Muslim World lags far behind the Non-Muslim World.

 

Table-2

Basic Indicators about the Muslim and the Non-Muslim Worlds

 

Item	Muslim World		Non-Muslim World
	High Income Countries	Low Income Countries	High Income Countries	Low Income Countries
Population living below international poverty line	..	33.8	..	27.6
Per capita GDP (US$)	8,612	613	26,180	2,512
GDP growth rate (per cent)	-0.7	-0.2	2.6	1.5
Literacy rate (per cent)	77	59	98	79
Life expectancy (years)	72	58	79	64
Population growth rate (per cent)	2.1	2.2	0.5	1.4
Population without safe water (per cent)	19	36	6	28
No. of doctors per 100,000 persons	123	82	273	115

 

Source:  The World Bank, 2000; UNDP, 2001.

 

Note:[34] 

 

Today the Muslim World, as a whole faces a number of challenges as evidenced by the serious problems that beset individual Muslim countries. Mahbub ul Haq rightly pointed out that: ‘The development ranks of Islamic countries are generally lower than per capita ranks, showing that their income has not been fully translated into the lives of their people. The overall HDI for 49 Islamic countries is only 0.393, placing the Islamic World in the low human development category.’[35] According to the Human Development Report 2001, 44 Muslim countries had a lower value of HDI than that of the world average.[36] Moreover, in similar income groups, several Muslim countries were far behind their Non-Muslim counterparts in terms of human development. In the following Table, two examples are quoted in this regard. The data indicates that within the group of high-income countries with similar income, the HDI world ranking places UAE in 45th position as against New Zealand, which enjoys the 19th position. Similarly, in low-income countries, Guinea occupies 150th position in comparison to Viet Nam which is ranked 101st The literacy rates in New Zealand and Viet Nam were 99 and 93 per cent as compared to UAE and Guinea where the figures were only 75 and 35 per cent, respectively. This situation reflects that in addition to other factors, the mismanagement of resources in Muslim countries is an important cause for their human under-development.

  

 

Table-3

Comparison of the Muslim and the Non-Muslim Countries

with Similar Income but Different Levels of Human Development

 

 

Country	HDI Ranking	GDP per Capita (US$)	Life Expectancy (years)	Literacy Rate (per cent)
High-income ·      New Zealand ·      UAE	19 45	19,104 18,162	77.4 75.1	99.0 75.1
Low-income ·      Viet Nam ·      Guinea	101 150	1,860 1,934	67.8 47.1	93.1 35.0

Source: UNDP, 2001.

 

Regarding the above discussion, a simple question arises – what will the state of human development in the Muslim World be like in the twenty-first century? Unfortunately, an analysis of global statistics does not present an encouraging picture. With reference to the context, it is important to mention here that a recent analysis of Mohammadi and Ahsan revealed that during the 1990s, on an overall basis (i.e., all low-income countries of the world), Non-Muslim countries received more aid as compared to Muslim countries.[37] Moreover, during this period, the growth rate of aid to Muslim countries was nearly  ‘–1’ in contrast to Non-Muslim countries where the respective figure was ‘2’. This was in spite of the fact that there was more poverty and debt burden, and less foreign investment in Muslim countries. Although, it can be argued that during the 1990s, various Muslim countries have made some progress with regard to human development, in the contemporary age of globalisation and competition, this progress is proving to be insufficient. It is worth noting that according to recent estimates of the UNDP, out of all 57 Muslim countries, 34 have fallen in the HDI world ranking. Furthermore, although some of the high-income Non-Muslim countries have also fallen in world ranking, they still remain among the top countries of the global HDI. The average growth of HDI for the Muslim World as a whole was –29.2 as against 3.0 percent of high-income Non-Muslim countries.[38] 

‘Education for All’ in the Muslim World: A Reality or Just a Slogan?

Education is at the heart of humanistic development. The goals of future-oriented education are defined by the development process as the collective vision of society. Education as knowledge is one of the creative elements in the formation of that collective vision and is also one of the important means for realising the agenda of human ascent from the shadows out. It has a catalytic role in each element as well as the human development process as a whole.[39] In Islamic literature, there is an enormous emphasis on the acquisition of knowledge. The first verse of the Quran was a command to the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) to read, learn and understand  (Quran, 96: 1-4). According to Quranic teachings, Allah gave man the ability to observe, think and to write with the pen so that he could circulate knowledge broadly and preserve his cultural heritage for coming generations. In the Quran, knowledge and education are highly emphasised and it praises learned people, encourages original thinking and human development. Unfortunately, in the contemporary world these teachings are widely neglected and thus are limited only to the extent of ‘theory’. In the practical sense, the Muslim World is far behind in this field. It is noteworthy that these religious teachings are also supported by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights unanimously adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, which considers education as a basic human right.[40] Similarly, the ‘World Conference on Education for All’ (jointly sponsored by UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP and the World Bank) held in 1990 at Jomtien (Thailand), adopted the ‘World Declaration on Education for All.’[41] It called on all countries to provide basic education to all their citizens by the end of the twentieth century. According to its Article One (Meeting Basic Learning Needs) – Section One: 

Every person – child, youth and adult – shall be able to benefit from educational opportunities designed to meet their basic learning needs. These needs comprise both essential learning tools (such as literacy, oral expression, numeracy and problem solving) and the basic learning contents (such as knowledge, skills, values and attitudes) required by human beings to be able to survive, to develop their full capacities, to live and work in dignity, to participate fully in development, to improve the quality of their lives, to make informed decisions and to continue learning (UNICEF, UNESCO, UNDP and World Bank, 1990:3).[42] 

In April 2000, 188 countries (including all Muslim countries) joined ‘The World Education Forum’ in Dakar. The Dakar Conference was held to review progress after the ‘World Conference on Education for All’ (1990) and to reaffirm their commitment to basic education. The World Education Forum was important in the context that here: (i) a commitment for free and compulsory education was made,[43] (ii) governments were particularly requested to develop new or strengthen existing educational plans, and, (iii) developed countries acknowledged that several developing countries lack economic resources required to achieve the objective of ‘education for all.’[44] In fact, in several Muslim countries the situation of education sector is quite discouraging. For instance in Pakistan (the only nuclear power in the Muslim World), government statistics for the year 2001 indicate that the country’s literacy rate was only 49 per cent (male 61.3 per cent and female 36.8 per cent).[45] This literacy rate varies in the country across the provinces and rural and urban areas.[46] It is quite discouraging that after more than half a century of independence, this country is still among the countries of the world, which have the lowest literacy rates.[47] Similarly, Table: 4, which indicates a cross-country comparison of high and low-income Muslim and Non-Muslim Worlds also reflects a discouraging picture. As is discussed above, here too, it is obvious from the figures that in spite of having the same level of per capita income, in the context of human development, Qatar and Mauritania are far behind Spain and Mongolia in the respective categories. The literacy rates of both these Muslim countries are also far lower than their Non-Muslim counterparts. This situation clearly demands more investment in education. However, the proportionate public expenditure on education, both in Qatar and Mauritania are lower than Spain and Mongolia, respectively. This situation raises concern about how Muslim countries can make significant progress in the field of human development in the contemporary globalised world. 

 

Table-4

Comparison of Muslim and Non-Muslim Countries

with Similar Income but Different Levels of Human Development, Adult Literacy Rate and Expenditure on Education

Country	HDI Ranking	GDP per Capita	Adult Literacy Rate	Public Expenditure on Education (Percentage of GNP)
High-income ·               Spain ·               Qatar	21 48	18,079 18,789	97.6 80.8	5.0 3.4
Low-income ·               Mongolia ·               Mauritania	116 139	1,711 1,609	62.3 41.6	5.7 5.1

 

Source:  Same as Table: 3.

 

Human (In)Security

            Human security is an important component of human development. There are varying views about human security and in recent years it has been considered that the borders of this notion are stretched beyond the defence of a country’s geographic boundaries. In Bhagavan’s view ‘human security means ensuring that people’s basic needs are met, which at least, is about access to secure and adequate livelihoods and income.’[48] In 1994, the UNDP argued that: ‘For too long, the concept of security has been shaped by the potential for conflict between states. For too long, security has been equated with the threats to a country’s border. For too long, nations have sought arms to protect their security. For most people today, a feeling of insecurity arises more from worries about daily life than from the dread of a cataclysmic world event. Job security, income security, health security, environmental security, security from crime – these are the emerging concerns of human security all over the world’.[49] In the same report, the UNDP further argued that: ‘The world can never be at peace unless people have security in their daily lives. Future conflicts may often be within nations rather than between them – with their origins buried deep in growing socio-economic deprivation and disparities. The search for security in such a milieu lies in development, not in arms.’ A careful consideration of these definitions reflects that Bhagavan’s emphasis is on the basic needs approach and his definition fails to encircle a broader concept of human development.[50] The salient points of the UNDP’s approach are: 

1. Human security is a universal concern (both for the developed and the developing worlds).
2. When the security of people in any part of the world is challenged, it also affects the security of people in other parts.
3. Human security is people-centred as it is concerned with the daily lives of the masses.
4. It also means, security from hunger, disease, repression and protection from sudden and hurtful disruptions in the patterns of daily life.
5. Human security is not a substitute of the broader concept of human development rather a precondition for it. In addition, there is a strong relationship between human security and human development. Progress in one area will promote opportunities in the other.

            It is worth mentioning that the UNDP’s approach to human security is broader and more comprehensive as compared to Bhagavan’s definition.[51] This view is also supported by Buzan.[52] For him, state security is not necessarily enhanced by the decline of external military threats. Indeed, the reduced ability of the state to fulfil the needs of its citizens is also a potential threat to national and international security. However, it may be mentioned here that in its report of 1994, while providing the definition of human security, UNDP did not give due importance to the conventional aspect of security, i.e., the armed or external threats to the existence of a state. Whether these threats are local, regional or global – they may be beyond the control of a single nation state. The current wave of global violence, the US led war on terrorism (which is widely considered controversial across the Muslim World), the instability in the Middle East and the South Asian regions are the facts which currently strengthen the arguments that both, internal and external securities are important components of the overall notion of human security which is the prerequisite for human development. For this reason, the internal or external threat to the security of a country pushes for ever higher military spending which may seriously harm efforts to achieve a higher level of human development. This is particularly true after the 11th September (2001) when the changed global environment has threatened the human security of several countries in the world in general and the Muslim countries in particular.[53]

Table: 5 presents two sets of cross-country (high and low-income) comparisons. The Middle East and South Asia, are both the most troubled and volatile regions of the world. Israel and the UAE can be categorised as high-income and high-human development countries as compared to Nepal and Pakistan, which are at the low end of income and human development. The figures indicate that Israel, in spite of its extremely high military expenditures as compared to UAE, has well managed the utilisation of its financial capital and spends far higher proportionate amount on its health and education sectors. The respective figures for UAE are much lower and thus present a discouraging picture. The outcome of this situation is that life expectancy and adult literacy are considerably higher in the former as compared to the latter.[54] In the South Asian region, Nepal and Pakistan are almost at the same level of human development and face threats to their national security.[55] However, similar to Israel, Nepal’s proportionate spending on education and health are significantly higher than Pakistan’s. This situation reflects that Non-Muslim countries are able to manage their financial resources in an efficient way as compared to their Muslim counterparts.

 

Table-5

Human Security – Cross-country Comparison of Low

and High-Income Muslim and Non-Muslim Countries

 

Country/Region	HDI Ranking	Public Expenditure on Education (Percentage of GNP)	Public Expenditure on Health (Percentage of GDP)	Military Expenditure (Percentage of GDP)
High-income (Middle East) ·               Israel ·               UAE	22 45	7.6 1.7	6.0 0.8	8.1 3.2
Low-income (South Asia) ·               Nepal ·               Pakistan	129 127	3.2 2.7	1.3 0.9	0.9 4.4

Source: Same as Table: 3.

 

With reference to the context, it is important to briefly discuss the Islamic approach to human security, which is an important component of Shariah (Islamic law). In Islam, human security is considered a preliminary step to for achieving the objective of human development. Here the main emphasis is on the elimination of human poverty, which is also called human deprivation. The recent shift from the World Bank-IMF backed ‘structural adjustment programmes’ and then ‘enhanced structural adjustment facility’ to the current ‘poverty reduction and growth facility,’ and ‘poverty reduction support credit’ based on country specific ‘poverty reduction strategy papers,’ also highlights the importance of the elimination of poverty.[56] The Islamic approach to human security differs from the ‘basic need approach’ as in the former the anti-poverty programme is based on human security while in the latter, the main emphasis is on the fulfilment of the basic needs of humankind.[57] In Islamic philosophy, human security is a derivation of Quranic teachings where enormous emphasis is laid on social justice. It (Quran) says: ‘In their (wealthy people) wealth, the needy and deprived have due share’ (15:19). It ‘points to the need for a system in which economic power is justly distributed, wherein an individual’s consumption level may not necessarily be proportional to his capacity to earn. The difference between these two magnitudes – viz. individual’s earning capacity and his level of consumption – has to be made up by a social security programme.’[58]

According to Muslim belief everything is created by Allah and the human being is a very special creature in the universe. In Islam, Muslims are bound to total submission to Allah and this submission is the only way to their future security. The concept of Jihad is an important pillar of the Islamic approach to human security. In the words of Kolocotronis: ‘Jihad is a struggle governed by rules and regulations – in it there is no room for terrorism. Muslims who have a clear understanding of the original teachings of Islamic Jihad know the true nature of the struggle.’[59] This view is also supported by Boisard.[60] A twentieth-century famous Muslim scholar Maududi writes: ‘Jihad means struggle to the utmost of one’s capacity.’[61] Jameelah agrees with Maududi and stresses the point that this is a struggle to establish righteousness and vanquish evils.[62] She uses the concept of inner struggle. The late spiritual leader of the Iranian Islamic Revolution has also expressed similar views and suggested that in reality, inner Jihad is the supreme Jihad which is a ‘ceaseless war that man is called upon to wage against his inner-self’.[63] This discussion reflects that in its broader spectrum, the Jihad is a continuous struggle for the establishment and the promotion of righteousness and elimination of evils such as human under-development, human insecurity, illiteracy, hunger and human deprivation etc.[64] If such a struggle is made in a systematic way and within its prescribed boundaries, it can be an important source for the promotion of human security which ultimately will strengthen the whole process of human development.

In contrast to the above facts, in the present day, Jihad is generally considered a controversial and sensitive issue and is commonly understood in the context of ‘holy war’ or terrorism. The terms Madrassas and Mujahideen are also considered closely associated with Jihad. Madrassas are religious educational institutions and the Mujahideen are usually graduates of these institutions who voluntarily wage Jihad. However, all graduates from Madrassas are not Mujahideen. Like other mainstream schools, Madrassas play an important role in improving the literacy situation and fulfilling peoples’ spiritual needs by the dissemination of religious knowledge. In the words of Nayyar: ‘In a society that has persistently neglected the education of its children, and where investment of time and labour in schools does not go very far in fulfilling the needs of livelihood, Madrassas have rapidly emerged as a parallel, but non-equivalent system of education.’[65] It is worth mentioning that it is quite common in the Muslim World for people to seek refuge in religion when faced with human under-development, human insecurity, human deprivation and mass illiteracy. The same is also true of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in which the financial crises of the 1990s were further aggravated by the demise of the Soviet Union and resultantly the changed behaviour of major global players towards this country.[66] The prolonged civil war in Afghanistan and the rise of tension between India and Pakistan over the Kashmir issue were other major causes of attraction to Madrassas and Jihad. Some Madrassas became centres for religious extremism and promoted a narrow and self-styled brand of Jihad and sectarianism among their students. This situation has created a threat to human security. 

Human Deprivation

As against income poverty in which only income is considered as a parameter for judging the level of poverty, human poverty is described as human deprivation by the UNDP. Human deprivation is composed of ‘the percentage of people expected to die before the age of 40, the percentage of adults who are illiterate, and the overall economic provisioning in terms of the percentage of people without access to health services and safe water, and the percentage of underweight children below five.’[67] This definition is also supported by the World Bank and according to the World Development Report 2000/2001: ‘Poverty is pronounced deprivation in well-being. But what precisely is deprivation? The voice of poor people bear eloquent testimony to its meaning. To be poor is to be hungry, to lack shelter and clothing, to be sick and not cared for, to be illiterate and not schooled. But for poor people, living in poverty is more than this. Poor people are particularly vulnerable to adverse events outside their control. They are often treated badly by the institutions of state and society and excluded from voice and power in those institutions.’[68] A similar view has also been expressed by McNamara.[69] A careful consideration of the concept of human deprivation reflects that it is mainly concerned with basic social indicators while the social sector development of a country is a part of the overall process of human development.[70] In this context, human deprivation and human insecurity are closely associated with each other and have strong connections with mass-illiteracy and income poverty. The under-development in these sectors generates a vicious circle, which keeps the cycle of human under-development in rotation.

In the following Table, where two Muslim and two Non-Muslim countries are selected for comparison from high and low-income categories, the cross-country comparison highlights some important points. With respect to HDI ranking, both Venezuela in the high-income category and Nicaragua in the low-income category, are slightly lower than their Muslim counterparts, i.e., Malaysia and Egypt. Similarly, both these Muslim countries also enjoy a considerably higher level of per capita GDP as compared to their respective Non-Muslim counterparts. Furthermore, figures show that the proportion of population below the poverty line (income poverty) is also nearly half in Malaysia and Egypt as compared to Venezuela and Nicaragua, respectively. However, the dark side of the picture is that this betterment is not translated into the elimination of human deprivation. Statistics show that Malaysia was on 13th position in the global ranking of ‘human deprivation index’ as compared to Venezuela where the figure was only 8. A similar situation can be seen in the case of Egypt and Nicaragua. This is the reason why the percentage value of HDI was significantly higher in both Muslim countries as compared to their counterparts. This situation also reflects inefficient utilisation of resources, which is why Muslim countries are facing serious problems of human deprivation.

 

Table-6

 Human Deprivation – Cross-country Comparison of Low

and High-Income Muslim and Non-Muslim Countries

 

Country	HDI Ranking	GDP per capita (US$)	HDI (HDI-1)		Population below national [income] poverty line (per cent)
			Ranking	Value (per cent)
High-income Countries ·    Venezuela ·    Malaysia	61 56	5,495 8,209	8 13	8.6 10.9	31.3 15.5
Low-income Countries ·    Nicaragua ·    Egypt	106 105	2,279 3,420	39 50	23.3 31.7	50.3 22.9

Source: Same as Table: 3.

 Human Capital

There are various types of capital: physical capital, financial capital, social capital, and human capital to name a few. Physical capital includes all physical facilities, infrastructure, fixtures and tools available for a specific cause while the concept of financial capital is associated with the stock and supply of money. The analogy between the notions of physical capital and human capital can be considered the tools and the training, which enhance the productivity of an individual.[71] The concept of social capital refers to the features of social organisations such as networks, norms and the trust that facilitates cooperation among various individuals for the purpose of mutual benefits. In this context, social capital enhances the benefits of investment in physical and human capital.[72] In this section, only human capital is briefly discussed in the contest of the overall human development process.

One important point in the economics of human development is the creation of ‘the idea that the concept of physical capital as embodied in tools, machines and other productive equipment can be extended to include human capital as well.’[73] Schultz applied the notion of human capital to the economics of education, particularly to an explanation of the increase in productivity of human resources.[74] He also explained the relationship between human capital and economic growth. In a similar context, Gary Becker focused on mathematical and statistical economics of human capital.[75] Woodhall agrees with Becker and Schultz by saying: ‘The concept of human capital refers to the fact that human beings invest in themselves by means of education, training, or other activities, which raise their future income by increasing their lifetime earnings.’[76] It is important that the element of investment and return is the main focus of this concept. Since the 1960s, substantial changes have taken place in the global economy, therefore, this factor has made the concept of human capital – technical knowledge which considers human beings as an input into the production process.[77] However, in spite of this limitation, the notion is widely used in academic and government circles. A comprehensive definition of human capital is given in a recent report of the Government of Pakistan (2001) which states: ‘Human capital development which is the product of education and improvement in health and nutrition, is both a part of and a means of achieving this goal. Human capital is critical in raising the living standards of the poor.’[78]

Here, it would be appropriate to look at the situation of human capital formation in Muslim and Non-Muslim countries. In the following Table, four countries are selected for comparison in high and low-income categories. Each of the two countries in the respective category are almost at the same level of human development. Although, the notion of human capital is much broader in scope, here, due to limited space available, only education, health and communication are taken into account. On the basis of the figures presented in Table: 7, it can be argued that these Muslim countries were spending a reasonable amount on education and the number of physicians were also quite encouraging in Kyrgyzstan. However, the actual problem rests with the low level of expenditure on health. In contrast, both, Bulgaria and South Africa were spending considerably higher amounts on health as compared to their respective Muslim counterparts. It is common knowledge that Muslim countries are far behind in the fields of communication and technology. The following figures also present the same picture. Therefore, in the case of the number of telephone lines and television sets, both, Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan are lagging behind as compared to their respective counterparts.
 

Table-7

Human Capital – Cross-country Comparison of Muslim and Non-Muslim Countries with respect to Education,

Health and Communication

Country	HDI ranking	Public expenditure on education (% of GNP)	Health		Communication
			Public expenditure (% of GDP)	Physicians per 100,000 people	Phone lines per 1,000 people	TV per 1,000 people
High-income ·   Bulgaria ·   Malaysia	57 56	3.2 4.9	3.8 1.4	345   66	329 198	366 166
Low-income ·   South Africa ·   Kyrgyzstan	94 92	7.6 5.3	3.3 2.9	56 301	115 76	125 44

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Same as Table: 3.

 

Review and Reflections

            Development theorising is a complex and problematical exercise, and in this context, this short piece of research has discussed only a few dimensions of the broader concept of human development with reference to the contemporary situation of the Muslim World.[79] The Human Development Report 2001 argues that ‘the course of human development is never steady. The changing world always brings new challenges, and the past decade has seen serious setbacks and reversals’ (UNDP, 2001:13).[80] Thus, it can safely be said that any specific and restricted episode of theorising with respect to the dynamics of a complex and changing situation within the unstable Muslim World, is in fact, a discrete and fragmented exercise particularly in terms of the relationships between theory and the actual situation.

            The discussion made in the paper highlights that the Muslim World’s performance in the human development sector has been poor as compared to the Non-Muslim World. In the words of Abu-Sulayman, an eminent Muslim scholar: ‘Internally weak, relatively backward, frustrated, conflict ridden, suffering from internal tensions, and often controlled and abused by foreign powers, the Muslim World is in a state of crises. For Muslims, all modern history is a tragedy. At the earlier time, during the sweeping revolution of Islam, Muslims were the custodian of civilisation and both the centre and master of the civilised world. But at present, the Muslim polity is neither master nor partner, and both Muslims and Islam are often regarded in the world politics as little more than problematic. In Muslim countries it is customary to blame external powers and imperialism for all manner of ills. Although this habit may point up many of the grievances and obstacles Muslims face, it cannot explain the internal cause of the ill.’[81] Abu-Sulayman is right in his argument as the outcome of the above analysis also reflects the poor state of human development in the Muslim World. Whether it is an overall picture of human development, or these are its various components, e.g., education, human security, elimination of human deprivation or the formation of human capital, Muslim countries are much behind Non-Muslim countries.

            This situation demands urgent measures for improvement. To overcome the problem of human under-development, the Muslim World needs to adopt a multi-prong strategy. Particularly, it needs: (i) more allocation of financial resources, (ii) optimum use of available resources, (iii) improvement in the educational situation, (iv) strengthening activities for human security, (v) elimination of human deprivation, and, (vi) development of human capital. In this context, how more financial resources can be acquired and be utilised efficiently, is an important question. One of the most important options is that in the contemporary global situation, Muslim countries should strengthen the OIC and under this umbrella, they should jointly consider their security issues. Therefore, an Islamic Security Council may be established within the framework of the OIC. The establishment and effective role of this Council, on the one hand will ease the work of the UN and improve its image[82] and on the other, it will be supportive in resolving conflicts and instability within the Muslim World. As a first step, major Muslim countries should join together to cut their defence budget starting from one per cent per annum to at least 10 per cent in a decade. This reduction would save billions of dollars out of which half can be allocated for the proposed Council. This amount would be enough to maintain a joint Islamic Defence Force. The remaining half of the financial resources should be pooled in an Islamic Human Development Fund. At the initial stage, this money should be utilised to establish a network of infrastructure and start various human development projects in deprived communities in Muslim countries.

            Furthermore, in the present age of information technology, a hold on the world’s leading financial institutions and control of global media are two key elements in playing a leading role in global affairs. Unfortunately, Muslim countries are far behind in both areas. This situation demands the strengthening of the activities of the Islamic Development Bank and the establishment of a strong Islamic news agency. These measures would not only be helpful in improving the human development situation in the Muslim World but will also create an environment of mutual trust and confidence which would be supportive in global peace and prosperity. It may be noted here, that these measures are not beyond practicability. The Muslim World has an added advantage of common religion, a common cultural heritage and a common history. Driving strength from its rich traditions, it has the potential to set an example to the rest of the world as is done by the European Union.