It has now become commonplace to argue that the objective of development is more than just an increase in GDP. There is growing consensus, for instance, that what we seek is improvements in living standards and, more broadly, democratic, sustainable and equitable development. Other important measures of success in development - besides per capita GDP - are health indicators such as, for example, longer life-spans, low infant mortality, access to primary health care, and access to clean water. There have been some marked successes in these areas in recent years, as such indicators have improved significantly in many countries in both the industrialized and the developing world. In the last forty years for example, we have seen low-income countries add fifteen years to their populations' life expectancy and adult mortality drop by seventeen percent.

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