Caught (up) in traffic

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Daily Archives: May 25, 2016

Better indicators than GDP

A friend shared this article on social media:

Five measures of growth that are better than GDP

The article explains in clear and simple terms five better indicators of growth and development than what is regarded as the conventional and traditional measure that is gross domestic product (GDP). There is an analogy in the article using speed, a parameter in traffic, to explain how GDP is insufficient in describing growth in a more complete manner. For example, in the Philippines, the significant increase in GDP over the last 6 years has been mentioned as proof of economic growth. While this is true, many people could not appreciate this growth since there is the perception is that it is not inclusive. That is, economic development is not felt by many who are in the lower income classes.

Speed, indeed, is not enough to describe the transport situation along a road considering that there are other metrics needed to have a more complete picture of transport and traffic conditions. I will talk about this in another posting soon.