Measuring progress in a changing Europe
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has come under critique lately at national and European levels as the dominant yardstick to measure ‘’standards of living’’. Scientists and policy makers increasingly call for alternative methods to determine not just economic output but societies’ overall well-being, increasingly referred to as ‘’progress’’.
Comprehending and measuring social progress has become an important international theme which engages not only civil society but many actors at local, national, and supranational level.
Those involved in the discussion include high-profile politicians – e.g., French Prime Minister Nicolas Sarkozy recently launched a Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress – to international organisations and the EU. In 2009, the European Commission released its Communication to the Council and European Parliament entitled ‘’GDP and Beyond’’. Notably, the OECD coordinates a Global Project which brings together various international participants. Such initiatives underline the value and urgency of this discussion during the economic crisis.
The parties involved agree that GDP statistics were introduced to measure market economic activity: material well-being claims superiority over the complex and multidimensional nature of societal health. Amongst the many limitations of GDP and related economic indicators is that they gloss over growing disparities in income distribution (measured by the Gini coefficient) as well as disparities regarding access to services, education, and human rights. Thus they fail to accurately reflect the evolution, and more importantly the self-perception, of citizens’ living standards. Furthermore, tensions and externalities which go hand in hand with growth in globalised economies are not captured.
The recent report produced by Nobel Prize winners Joseph Stiglitz and Amartya Sen and commissioned by Sarkozy also proposes a new indicator. It would still be calculated with GDP but also include social and environmental factors to assess the sustainable development and happiness of a population. The partners in the Global Forum mentioned above also work to elaborate new ways to measure overall societal progress.
The introduction of an alternative indicator is crucial to support policy and political decision-making. Currently NGOs and other organisations working in the public interest are working against the main political dogma of economic over social or community development. In recognising the interconnectedness of material and social well-being, policies would contribute to the development of our societies and human and social capital, as well as contributing to economic and material development.
But it is also question of governance. Effectively, an alternative indicator represents a paradigm shift away from a purely economic value system to a more democratic one that would take into account qualitative aspects influencing health at individual, interpersonal, and environmental levels.
This in turn would be beneficial for realising the EU 2020 strategy of a socially inclusive and cohesive Europe which emphasises quality of life and good health for all.
Finally, by highlighting the interplay between inequalities and health, it would enable both policy makers and health advocates to make more informed decisions, backed up by comprehensive and transparent data.
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