Human Development: From Concept to Action

The Human Development Report (HDR) has, since its first publication in 1990, met with an active, interested response on the part of the global development community. Its messages have been the subject of national and international-level policy debate. Increasingly, policy statements in various fora endorse the notion of people-centred development, i.e. the notion that development should be development of people, by people, and for people. The response to the HDR however, has gone well beyond debate and policy dialogue; in many countries efforts have been made to move from theory to practical action. If one were to classify the different types of initiatives a 10-point agenda would emerge, one that could be pursued and adapted to different contexts. The following discussion discusses each of these points.