The "Equitable and Sustainable Welfare" (Bes) is better than the GDP

GDP alone does not provide a genuine measurement of quality of life. Bes will be an official indicator of fair and sustainable socio-economic welfare.

The Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress, the so-called Stiglitz Report, has been an important step forward to work toward more accurate indicators of human welfare. Since its presentation to the public in 2009, it has fostered wide discussion over its preions.

The Report states that individual welfare is a multi-dimensional variable, and as such several dimensions need to be taken into account beside income when well-being is measured.

The objective is to develop a multi-dimensional indicator of Equitable and Sustainable Welfare (Benessere Equo e Sostenibile – BES), which can complement GDP by measurement various areas of individual well-being and especially look at sustainability in terms of the physical, social, natural, human capital that can be passed on to future generations.

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