The 2009 Arab Human Development Report - whose security counts?

The global Human Development Report series was launched by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1990, challenging the notion that development could be measured by gross national product alone. Its aim was “putting people back at the centre of the development process in terms of economic debate, policy and advocacy”.

Building on this tradition, the Arab Human Development Reports (AHDR) aim to act as milestones in the discussion and debate on the “reform agenda in the Arab region”. The reports are commissioned by the UNDP but researched and written independently by teams of Arab scholars and practitioners. In spite of this, the reports have been dogged with accusations that their content has been amended under external political pressure.

This latest 2009 Arab Human Development Report, focusing on human (in)security in the region, is no different. However, while dialogue and debate over what the report covers and what it prioritises is important in the formation of appropriate and effective policies, it should not be allowed to overshadow the important issues that have been raised by the report’s authors.

The report offers an opportunity to both governments and civil society to grasp a framework which can be adapted to local needs and used as a starting point for regional cooperation to address trans-border threats. This is already being explored in the context of water resource management, as highlighted in a blog on water scarcity in the region.