Advocacy is an integral element of the UN's work, and the UN advocates for change where the need for change is the greatest. In line with the UN's fundamental role to support national development efforts, the UN also responds to national partners' requests to develop capacity and fill technical gaps where they exist.
Country Assessment.
India is the fourth largest economy in the world after the US, China and Japan. India's population now exceeds 1.2 billion people. Of these, almost 620 million are males and more than 580 million are females; 243 million people, or 23 per cent of the total population, are estimated to be in the age range of 10-19 years. The overall sex ratio (the number of females per 1000 males) for India is 940 females per 1000 males as per 2011 Census, which is an improvement over the 2001 figure of 933.
However, child sex ratio (0-6 age group) has declined from 927 to 914 between 2001 and 2011 as per Census figures. Though there has been a substantial decline in overall infant and child mortality and a consequent increase in life-expectancy of the population, the decline has not been sufficient to achieve the Twelfth Plan goal of reduction to 30/1000 live births by 2012. Literacy levels in India have gone up from 64.8 per cent in 2001 to 74 per cent in 2011.
While Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rates have been high (7.7 per cent in 2011), India also exhibits the paradox of high growth rates and high levels of poverty. Approximately 32 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line. Among the poor in India, certain socially excluded groups experience greater challenges in accessing rights, entitlements and opportunities, and in moving out of poverty. Disparities in India take on various hues – there are disparities across geographical regions (States, districts, rural-urban), disparities along gender lines with women and sexual minorities facing discrimination and disparities faced by social groups such as Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Minorities, Differently Abled Persons, Internally Displaced Persons and People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV), to name a few.
