Table 3 shows twelve of the world’s most populous countries ranked in order
of GDP per person. The table also shows life expectancy (the expected life span at
birth), literacy (the percentage of the adult population who can read), and Internet
usage (the percentage of the population that regularly uses the Internet). These
data show a clear pattern. In rich countries, such as the United States, Japan, and
Germany, people can expect to live to about 80, almost all of the population can
read, and a half to two-thirds of the population uses the Internet. In poor countries,
such as Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, people typically die 10 to 20 years earlier,
a substantial share of the population is illiterate, and Internet usage is rare.
Data on other aspects of the quality of life tell a similar story. Countries with
low GDP per person tend to have more infants with low birth weight, higher
rates of infant mortality, higher rates of maternal mortality, higher rates of child
malnutrition, and less common access to safe drinking water. In countries with
low GDP per person, fewer school-age children are actually in school, and those
who are in school must learn with fewer teachers per student. These countries also
tend to have fewer televisions, fewer telephones, fewer paved roads, and fewer
households with electricity. International data leave no doubt that a nation’s GDP
per person is closely associated with its citizens’ standard of living