KINGSTON, Jamaica – WHILE JAMAICA continues to improve its Human Development Index (HDI) ranking, one United Nations representative has charged that the country's high debt burden, combined with low economic growth and high unemployment, continues to pose a threat to human development. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Assistant Secretary General Heraldo Muñoz, who was addressing the launch of the Human Development Report 2013, in a video statement said while “Jamaica is without a doubt part of the rising south,” the three factors are in need of attention. According to the 2013 Human Development Report, which was launched at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel on Tuesday, between 1980 and 2012, the life expectancy of Jamaicans increased by 2.8 years. Mean years of schooling for Jamaican children improved by 4.4 years and expected years of schooling, by 2.0 years.
