U.S. Quality of Life High, but Poverty Rising, Says U.N.

UNITED NATIONS — Canada, France, Norway and the United States have the highest quality of life, according to the U.N. Human Development Index released Thursday.

However, the number of people in the United States living in poverty is gradually rising, despite the nation’s per capita income of $26,397, the report says.

The report, published by the U.N. Development Program, sought ways of measuring living standards according to per capita income, life expectancy and educational standards. This year’s report used 1994 figures.

In general, the statistics showed that rich countries offer a better standard of living, even to those people who are least well-off, than do poor countries.

The program this year created the poverty index in an attempt to compare levels of poverty in selected countries, an exercise likely to be criticized by statisticians.

Poverty, according to the index, worsened in Australia, Belgium, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Britain and the U.S., while conditions improved in Canada, Denmark, France, Italy and Spain.