The Human Development Index can give you some idea where countries stand in terms of development. HDI measures three factors: life expectancy, education, and income. Going by these numbers and looking at the latest report, it looks like Zimbabwe improved the most from the last report and Venezuela deteriorated the most. Libya has also improved greatly, recovering some of its lost status following its civil war. But this only goes from year to year; I’m not sure about longer-term trends.

Practically none. If anything, most countries have turned rightward and are more authoritarian than they were before.

Environmental issues are harming many countries. And let’s not forget about wars.

I suppose one country that has liberalized some, and become less authoritarian, is Saudi Arabia. Yes, they still kill people for no reason, but the social conditions, especially for woman, have improved mightily.