How should an MVI look?

The MVI’s Development must be based on the following guiding principles as articulated in the Secretary-General’s Report on the potential development, finalization and use of a Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) for SIDS:

1. Multidimensionality. Indicators should be drawn from all three dimensions of sustainable development (economic, environmental, social) to ensure equity and broad acceptance.
2. Universality. The index should be designed to capture the vulnerabilities of all developing States well, so as to ensure credibility and comparability.
3. Exogeneity. The index needs to clearly distinguish between exogenous and inherited factors to ensure compatibility with current performance-based allocation models.
4. Availability. The index needs to employ available, recognized, comparable and reliable data, while approximations and imputations may be necessary to avoid inaction.
5. Readability. The index’s design needs to be clear and easily understood, avoiding redundancy.

In addition:

       6. corresponding measures of resilience should be employed to determine “net vulnerability” over time, such that measures of vulnerabilities are balanced by resilience, thus eliminating the need for perpetual support.