Human Development Reports - United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

The 2013 Human Development and Mahbub ul Haq awards competitions are now closed. Thank you for your submissions. The finalists will be announced on this page shortly.

The biennial Awards programme seeks to publicly recognize the contributions of National and Sub-national Human Development Reports to development policy and practice in countries and regions, and to inform general HD discourse through innovation and good practices. It is also an occasion to honour an individual who has significantly advanced the cause of human development with the Mahbub ul Haq Awards.

The Human Development Awards are designed to:

• advocate the human development approach and core principles of national ownership, independence and objectiveness, and participatory process;
• encourage further innovation with respect to HD concepts, measurement, capacity building, analysis, and advocacy for people-centered development policies;
• demonstrate the effective use of the HDRs as an advocacy tool in support of the MDGs, human rights and other national priorities;
• share national, sub-national and regional HDR good practices, while encouraging partnerships at the country and regional level;
• strengthen and promote the effectiveness of HDRs in drawing on and feeding into the strategic work of UN Country Teams;
• honor governments that put human development at the heart of the political agenda and national strategies; and
• engage the media on substantive issues though extensive outreach.

The Mahbub ul Haq Award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Development

In addition to the various Awards presented to regional, national, and sub-national HDR teams, each Human Development Awards Programme also includes the Mahbub ul Haq Award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Development.

This Award was created to honour Mahbub ul Haq (1934-1998), the leading development thinker who pioneered the human development approach and founded the global Human Development Report. It is presented to a leading national, regional or world figure who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to furthering HD understanding and progress.

The Mahbub ul Haq Award alternates between recognizing political leaders and civil society leaders. Recipients of this Award include:

• 2009 - Frances Stewart, author, researcher and advocate of human development
• 2007 - Sheila Watt-Cloutier, arctic community activist
• 2004 - Fazle Hasan Abed, founder of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC)
• 2002 - Fernando Cardoso, President of Brazil, 1995-2002

Visit these sections for more information of particular events: 2009 | 2007 | 2004 | 2002 | 2000