Padang, W Sumatra (ANTARA) – West Sumatra Governor Mahyeldi Ansharullah highlighted that the human development index (HDI) in West Sumatra Province in 2022 was higher than the national average of HDI.”HDI in West Sumatra is 73.26, or increased by 0.61 points, as compared to 72.65 in 2021. The figure is higher as compared to the national average of HDI at 72.91,” he noted here on Saturday. The data spotlighted by Ansharullah was obtained from Statistics Indonesia (BPS). nsharullah remarked that in 2022, Padang City was the region in the province to have recorded the highest HDI, at 83.29, while Mentawai Islands District was recorded as the region with the lowest HDI, at 62.19. He explained that HDI covers several components, such as life expectancy, school life expectancy, mean years of schooling, and residents’ expenditure per capita. In 2022, West Sumatra’s life expectancy reached 69.90 years, reflecting an increase of 0.31 years from the previous year. “This figure showed that the health rate of the West Sumatra population increased by 0.31 points as compared to the previous year,” he stated. Moreover, the school life expectancy in West Sumatra increased, from 14.09 years in 2021 to 14.10 years in 2022. Furthermore, the mean years of schooling in West Sumatra stood at 9.18 years in 2022, an increase from 9.07 years in 2021. The mean years of schooling is the average number of years of education completed by people aged 15 years and over. Meanwhile, expenditure per capita of the population in West Sumatra was recorded at Rp11.13 million (around US$733.88) in 2022, which increased from Rp10.79 million (around US$711.46) in 2021. “This showed that there has been an improvement in the income of West Sumatra’s residents, which is directly proportional to the purchasing power,” the governor remarked.

Source: Antara News Agency (ANA)