Kosovo Human Development Report 2010 - UNDP Kosovo - United ...

socially excluded groups cannot necessarily
enjoy equally the benefits of
such opportunity. When deprivation is
prolonged throughout the lifespan of
individuals or groups, it can result in an
intergenerational transfer of exclusion.
The transfer of exclusion is sustained
by continued external and internal
shocks, thus making it difficult for existing
generations to provide better
opportunities for the next generations.
I have completed several computer
courses in hardware and fixing computers.
I have applied for a position
but they haven’t even called me for the
test, and I was told that since I am a
woman I may not understand much
about these things and thus may not
be able to do the job.
1.3
Youth participant of a focus
group
Linkages between
human development
and social inclusion
Human development and social exclusion
are two complementary concepts.
Both focus on equitable human
opportunity as a measure of social
progress and human capacity as the
primary engine of progress. From the
human development point of view,
social inclusion is the process and outcome
linked to the full spectrum of
human fulfillment. If the objective of
development is to create an enabling
environment for people to enjoy long,
healthy and fruitful lives, exclusion
can hamper choices and opportunities.
Human development cannot take
place in a context of social exclusion.
The human development paradigm,
founded in 1990 (by Mahbub ul Haq,
Amartya Sen, Francis Stewart and Paul
Streeten) and promoted through the
UNDP Human Development Reports,
sets itself apart from previous development
theories by arguing that economic
growth does not automatically
trickle down to improving people’s
well-being. The concept of human
development proceeds from the perspective
of the individual. It incorporates
the language of “capabilities” to
assert that each individual, by virtue of
his or her existence, has a moral right to
develop his or her inherent capacities
(intellectual, physical, social) to the fullest
extent possible and to exercise the
greatest possible freedom of choice in
shaping his or her own life within their
society.
The human development concept
thus advocates putting people at the
centre, as both the means and end of
development. The goal of development
is therefore defined as the expansion
of human choices, freedoms
and capabilities. 24
Through this approach, human development
emphasizes the “agency” of
people themselves. It seeks to improve
human lives in the sense of wellbeing
and freedom and also to realize human
capacity to radically change and
improve societies. Human development
thus emphasizes two simultaneous
processes: 1) formation of human
capabilities as an explicit development
objective; and 2) the use people make
of their acquired capabilities to fulfil
their life goals and potential. It promotes
the idea that human action and
initiative is itself central to removing
obstacles to human development.
By emphasizing the diversity of human
needs, human development was
thus conceived as an alternative to
traditional policy prescriptions – such
as the neo-liberal Washington Con-
SOCIAL INCLUSION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT - A CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND
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