development gap

What is development?

The development of a country is the improvement in the standard of living through progress in economic growth, use of technology and human welfare.

What is the development gap?

The difference in standard of living between the world’s poorest and richest countries.

What is an LIC?

An LIC (Low Income Country) has a GNI per capita of US$1,135 or less.

What sector is an LIC’s economy mainly based off of?

The primary sector (agriculture).

What are some examples of LICs?

Afghanistan, Somalia, Uganda, Chad.

What is an NEE?

NEEs (Newly Emerging Economy) refer to countries currently experiencing increasing economic growth as a result of an expansion in the industrial (secondary) sector.

What are some examples of NEEs?

BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa)

MINTS (Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, Turkey)

What is an HIC?

An HIC (High Income Country) has a GNI per capita exceeding US$13,846.

What sectors are the economies of HICs based on?

The tertiary (services) and quaternary (research) sectors.

What is an economic indicator of development?

GNI (per capita/head).

What is GNI?

Gross National Income (per capita) refers to the total value of goods + services produced by a country in a year (divided by the total population).

What are the strengths of using GNI as an indicator for development?

It shows how economically developed a country is, and GNI per capita allows the measure to take in account a country’s population size.

What are the weaknesses of using GNI as an indicator for development?

• It only measures economic development and doesn’t factor in quality of life

• Because it is an average, it doesn’t show the immense variations in wealth present in some countries and thus makes the country appear more developed than it is.

What are the social indicators of development?

• Birth rate

• Death rate

• Infant mortality rate

• Literacy rate

• People per doctor

• Access to safe water

• Life expectancy

What is birth rate?

The number of live births per 1000 of the population every year.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using birth rate as an indicator of development?

Strength: it shows a country’s social progress (a low birth rate is often the result of more women being educated, meaning they end up having less kids, later in life in priority of their career)

Weakness: usually inaccurate and underestimated in LICs where not all births are recorded

What is death rate?

The number of deaths per 1000 of the population every year.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using death rate as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows quality + availability of healthcare

Weakness: often unexpectedly high in HICs due to ageing populations

What is infant mortality rate?

The number of deaths of children under the age of one years old per 1000 of the population, every year.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using infant mortality rate as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows quality + availability of healthcare.

Weakness: usually inaccurate + underestimated in LICs where not all infant deaths are recorded.

What is literacy rate?

The percentage of adults who can read and write.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using literacy rate as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows quality + availability of education

Weakness: inaccurate in countries where there are rural populations, conflict zones and squatter settlements which make it difficult to determine.

What is people per doctor?

The average number of people that depend on a single doctor.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using people per doctor as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows both quality + availability of healthcare + education (better educational facilites = more doctors)

Weakness: doesn’t include people who use their phones for medical advice (often in rural populations)

What is access to safe water?

The percentage of people that have access to safe drinking water.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using access to safe water as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows quality of infrastructure, i.e sewage networks

Weakness: water quality may decrease due to other reasons other than poor infrastructure like flooding.

What is life expectancy?

The average number of years a person can be expected to live.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of using life expectancy as an indicator of development?

Strength: shows quality + availability of healthcare

Weakness: given that it is an average, it appears lower in areas that have a high infant mortality rate.

What is HDI?

The Human Development Index is an indicator of development that combines income (GNI per capita), health (life expectancy) and education (average number of years of schooling) to form a value between 0 and 1.

What are the strengths of using HDI as an indicator of development?

Strength: it includes both economic and social factors (health/education), providing a broader perspective on the development of a country that isn’t solely focused on income.

Weakness: the data used to calculate HDI may be inaccurate/outdated, particularly in LICs.

What is the DTM?

The Demographic Transition Model shows the change in birth rate, death rate + population growth and size as a country develops.

What is natural increase?

When the birth rate is higher than the death rate, causing the population to grow.

What is natural decrease?

When the death rate is higher than the birth rate, causing the population to become smaller.

Describe stage 1 of the DTM.

• The birth rate is high and fluctuating as there is no use of contraception and people are having many children due to high infant mortality rates.

• The death rate is also high and fluctuating as a result of poor healthcare provision.

• The population size is low and steady.

• Remote communities + tribes are at this stage.

Describe stage 2 of the DTM.

• The birth rate remains high but steady as people have a lot of children to work on farms and because some won’t survive due to high infant mortality rates. There is also a continued lack of contraception being used.

• The death rate is quickly falling because of the improvement in healthcare in global effort to tackle malnutrition and disease.

• The population size is rapidly increasing.

• Most LICs are at this stage.

Describe stage 3 of the DTM.

• The birth rate declines rapidly as the use of contraception increases, fewer people work in agriculture (kids no longer needed to work the land) as the economy becomes more industrialised and more women begin to work instead of having children.

• The death rate falls slowly as healthcare continues to improve.

• The population size is increasing.

• Most NEEs are at this stage.

Describe stage 4 of the DTM.

• The birth rate is low and fluctuating because women have careers due to their improved societal status and thus have fewer children, later in life.

• The death rate is low and fluctuating as a result of the good standard of healthcare.

• The population size is high and steady.

• Most HICs are at this stage.

Describe stage 5 of the DTM.

• The birth rate is slowly falling given the heightened expense of childcare, the increased number of societal opportunities women receive and the frequent use of contraception.

• The death rate is low and steady but above the birth rate given that the population is aged and there are few children being born.

• The population size is slowly decreasing.

• Some HICs such as Japan are at this stage.

What physical factors cause uneven development?

• Extreme/tropical climate

• Landlocked countries

• Frequent natural disasters

• Few raw materials

How can an extreme climate cause uneven development?

It is difficult to grow crops in really hot/cold/dry climates meaning people have less disposable income they can use to spend on local goods and services because they have fewer crops to sell. This means the government earns less money from taxes and thus has less to spend on development projects.

How can a tropical climate cause uneven development?

A tropical climate results in more-climate related diseases such as malaria, meaning fewer people are able to work, go to school and be productive. This means some people will have a lower income and be unable to spend as much on goods + services in the community and so the government earns less through taxes. Therefore, they have less money to improve infrastructure and develop the country.

How can being a landlocked country cause uneven development?

When a country is landlocked, trade with other countries is limited as there is no seaborne trade. As a result, there is little economic growth and thus little money to spend on development projects.

How can frequent natural disasters cause uneven development?

If a country experiences frequent natural disasters, the government has to spend an immense amount of money on rebuilding infrastructure. This means they have less money to spend on developing the country.

How can having few raw materials cause uneven development?

Countries with fewer raw materials have less products to export to other countries meaning they make less money and so aren’t able to afford as many development projects. It may also be the case that a country has plenty of raw materials however cannot afford the infrastructure required to exploit them, leading to the same result.

What economic factors cause uneven development?

• Poor trade links

• Economy based on primary products

• Debt

How can poor trade links cause uneven development?

If a country has poor trade links (it trades a small amount of goods with few countries) it will experience little economic growth and thus won’t be able to spend as much money on developing the country.

How can an economy based on primary products cause uneven development?

Countries that mainly export raw materials make less money, given that they are sold for less profit than manufactured goods because they have less value. Additionally, the price of primary products tends to fluctuate, sometimes even below the cost of production. This means the government will have less to spend on improving infrastructure + other development projects.

How can debt cause uneven development?

LICs often have to borrow money from other countries and international organisations, for example, to help rebuild infrastructure after a natural disaster. This means they have to spend a lot of money paying the debt back, and therefore there is less to spend on development projects.

What historical factors cause uneven development?

• Colonisation

• Conflict

How can colonisation cause uneven development?

European countries colonised many countries in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas. The colonisers removed any profitable raw materials the country had and exported them as manufactured goods, meaning all profits went to them rather than the colonised country itself - which made no money at all. This prevented the colonised countries from developing their own industries.

How can conflict cause uneven development?

War means more money is spent on arms and military training than on improving infrastructure and developing the country - most of which is destroyed and damaged in crossfire. Important services such as healthcare and education are disrupted, meaning infant mortality rates rise and literacy rates drop.

What are the impacts of uneven development?

• Differences in wealth and health (thus quality of life)

• International migration

How are differences in wealth an impact of uneven development?

People who live in countries that are more developed (HICs/NEEs) will have higher incomes than those who live in less developed countries. This means people who live in more developed countries have a higher standard of living as they can afford more goods and services that make their lives more comfortable + convenient.

EX: GNI per capita in the UK is 40 times greater than in Chad.

How is differences in health an impact of uneven development?

Healthcare is generally better in more developed countries than in less developed countries. People often die in LICs due to diseases that can easily be treated as a result of the lack of adequate healthcare. This means that life expectancies are often much higher and infant mortality rates and death rates are much lower in HICs.

EX:

UK’s life expectancy → 81

Chad’s life expectancy → 53

How is international migration an impact of uneven development?

Many people from LICs and NEEs move to HICs to improve their quality of life, further increasing the development gap as these migrant workers end up contributing to the economies of the HICs rather than the LICs they leave from.

What are some strategies that can reduce the development gap?

• Investment

• Industrial development

• Tourism

• Aid

• Fair Trade

• Intermediate technology

• Debt Relief

• Microfinance loans

What is investment?

Foreign-direct investment (FDI) is when countries, organisations or transnational corporations invest in LICs to increase profits.

How can investment reduce the development gap?

It leads to an improvement in infrastructure and industry, and an increase in services.

It also provides employment opportunities and income from abroad, helping the economy grow.

How can industrial development reduce the development gap?

Industrial development brings employment in the manufacturing/service sectors, higher incomes and opportunities for the government to invest in housing, education and infrastructure.

EX: Malaysia → exploited its natural resources like oil and gas to develop its manufacturing sector.

How can tourism reduce the development gap?

Tourism leads to employment, investment and increased income from abroad from which infrastructure, education and healthcare can be improved.

What is aid?

Aid the donation of resources to a country from another country or NGO (non-governmental organisation) to help it develop.

How can aid reduce the development gap?

Aid gives countries the resources to invest in development projects to improve infrastructure and services.

EX: Goat Aid from Oxfam → money donated is used to buy a family goat which produces milk and butter that can be sold.

What is intermediate technology?

Intermediate technology is sustainable technology that is appropriate to the needs, skills, knowledge and wealth of the local people.

How can intermediate technology reduce the development gap?

It aims to improve local infrastructure and quality of life by aiding development projects.

EX: Irrigation at Adis Nifas, Ethiopia

What is free trade?

Free trade is when countries do not charge each other tariffs/quotas, increasing trade.

How can free trade reduce the development gap?

It enables LICs to export more products for less, increasing profits and thus overall economic development.

What are trading groups?

Trading groups are countries that have grouped together to increase trade between them by cutting tariffs and discouraging trade with non-members.

How can trading groups reduce the development gap?

Trade is encouraged and members can get higher prices for their goods.

This enables LICs to export more products for less, increasing profits and thus overall economic development.

EX: EU

What is Fair Trade?

Fair Trade is an international trade movement that aims to ensure that farmers in LICs get a fair price for the goods they produce.

How can Fair Trade reduce the development gap?

It helps improve the quality of life of local farmers by providing them an increased income.

Farmers also receive a premium from the price of their goods which is used to invest in local development projects. This improves infrastructure, education and healthcare in the local area.

EX: Fairtrade tea farmers in Malawi, 2016, used some of their premium to expand their local hospital.

What is debt relief?

Debt relief is when part or all of a country’s debt is cancelled, or interest rates are lowered.

How can debt relief reduce the development gap?

It means the country has more money to invest in improving its infrastructure, education and healthcare - and thus the quality of life of the people.

What is microfinance?

Microfinance refers to small-scale financial support that is available from banks specially set up to aid the poor in LICs

Microfinance loans are small loans given to people in LICs.

How can microfinance loans reduce the development gap?

They enable people to begin their own small businesses and become financially independent.

This brings about new employment opportunities and higher incomes in the local community.

EX: Gamreen Bank, Bangladesh → lent over $11 billion to 7 million members.

Where is Jamaica?

Jamaica is a country located in the south of North America. It is one of the largest islands in the Caribbean.

What was the state of Jamaica’s economy?

Previously, the country suffered from slow growth, high unemployment rates and debt.

This is due to the fact that Jamaica wasn’t an independent country and was under British rule until 1962 - it was reliant on British investment and leadership and so the economy didn’t grow.

How has tourism helped develop Jamaica’s economy and helped reduce the development gap?

The income from tourism generates tax revenue which the government uses to invest in development projects - such as improving transport infrastructure - increasing quality of life overall.

What are the benefits of tourism for Jamaica?

• Job opportunities and high incomes

  → ¼ of Jamaicans are employed in tourism, directly or indirectly

  → increased quality of life in areas like Ocho Rios

• Development of transport infrastructure

  → such as ports (for cruises), roads, and airports

• Conservation and landscaping projects

  → Montego Bay has been improved by landscaping

What are the problems of tourism for Jamaica?

Air pollution as of transport and resort construction (concrete releases CO₂ emissions).

However, ecotourism is on the rise which aims to provide tourist experiences that cause minimal environmental damage.