KATHMANDU: Nepal has climbed one place up in the Human Development Index (HDI), ranking 143 out of 192 countries in the 2021-2022 period, according to a United Nations Development Program (UNDP) report.

The report has identified that different climate shocks are affecting world order, pushing back the growth that was achieved in the past few years.

UNDP has published its Human Development Index (HDI) report for 2021-22, noting that for the first time in 32 years that the UN agency has been calculating HDI, the index declined globally for two straight years.

The report, titled ‘Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives: Shaping our Future in a Transforming World’, and released on September 8, also stated that more than 90 percent countries saw a decline in their HDI score in either 2020 or 2021, while over 40 percent nations declined in both the years.

Switzerland leads the way on the latest HDI, while Norway and Iceland enjoy second and third positions.

Among the South Asian countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka — only Pakistan and Afghanistan (180th position) are in the low human development category, according to the report.

Bhutan (127), Bangladesh (129), India (132) and Pakistan (161) are in the medium human development category, and the crisis-hit Sri Lanka has managed to improve its position by nine points, reaching the 73rd position on the index, finding itself in the high human development category.

Meanwhile, Maldives at the 90th position.