Dynamic Development✅

geography gcse ocr b specification. dyanmic development topic, using Ethiopia as LIDC case study. gcse exam to be taken summer 2025.

6.1a - what is the definition of development

• economic development is a measure of a county’s wealth

• Environmental development is an improvement in the quality of the environment e.g. pollution, water quality etc

• Social development is an improvement in human welfare to meet peoples needs e.g. access to jobs, education, healthcare etc

6.1a - what classifies an AC, EDC LIDC

• AC = countries that are wealthy with a wide range of jobs and services

• EDCs = countries transitioning from and LIDC to an AC

• LIDC = countries that are poor with a narrow range of reverses and jobs

6.1a - what is the definition of development

• economic development is a measure of a county’s wealth

• Environmental development is an improvement in the quality of the environment e.g. pollution, water quality etc

• Social development is an improvement in human welfare to meet peoples needs e.g. access to jobs, education, healthcare etc

6.1a - what classifies an AC, EDC LIDC

• AC = countries that are wealthy with a wide range of jobs and services

• EDCs = countries transitioning from and LIDC to an AC

• LIDC = countries that are poor with a narrow range of reverses and jobs

6.1a - what is the global distribution of ACs, EDCs and LIDCs (inc brandt line)

• ACs are located in Western Europe, USA and Canada, Australia and Japan

• LIDCs are in Central Africa and a few in Asia

• EDCs are in northern and southern Africa, South America and a lot of Asia

• The Brandt Line does not follow this completely as it groups the whole of europe together even though Eastern europe is not that developed compared to the west

6.1a - which measures of development illustrate consequences of uneven development

HDI

Birth rate

gdp per capita

literacy rate

life expectancy

6.1a - how does life expectancy illustrate consequences of uneven development

Life expectancy = shows how much healthcare there is.

Higher life expectancy means it is more developed.

as it means there are enough doctors, nutritious food, care for the elderly, little manual labour

6.1a - how does literacy rate illustrate consequences of uneven development

Literacy rate = number of people that can read and write per 100.

A high literacy rate shows a developed country as it means people work in the secondary and tertiary sector, in high-skilled and well-paying jobs

6.1a - how does GDP per capita illustrate consequences of uneven development

GDP per capita = gross domestic product one of country divided by the whole population.

High GDP shows that the country earns a lot of money from the products and services it puts out,

and shows that taxes are being paid

6.1a - how does birth rate illustrate consequences of uneven development

• Birth rate = a high birth rate shows an undeveloped country as it means there is a lack of contraception,and women are confined to the home.

• In ACs there is a lower birth rate as women are working + have contraception

6.1a - how does HDI illustrate consequences of uneven development

• HDI = a holistic way of measuring development.

• Takes in GDP per capita, life expectancy, and average years at school to find out if the people of a country are wealthy, healthy and wise.

• On a scale of 0-1.

• a high HDI indicates a developed country because it means it has a high GDP per capita, high life expentancy and high school years.

6.1b -Which human factors influence uneven development? (pos + neg)

1. conflict and civil war

   in LIDCs and EDCs, this stops them from developing.

   when there is fighting, people live in fear.

   They will not want to go to school, resulting in a lack of education.

   lack of education means They cannot get good jobs, lowering the GDP.

   additionally people are displaced.

2. big sports events

   Events like the World Cup and Olympics = when these are hosted in EDCs and LIDCs, this helps development.

   Increases the GDP through tourists and sponsors.

   Tourists help local business

   puts the country in peoples radar and makes it more popular, encouraging tourists to continue visiting even after the event. → positive multiplier effect

6.1b - Which physical factors influence uneven development? pos + neg

• Landlocked country =

  being landlocked reduces development because there are no ports

  -> less opportunity to trade

  -> low GDP

• Access to natural resoures like gas and coal =

  country can trade these resources and get profit

  they do not need to rely on other countries for natural resources and succumb to high prices

  Creates job opportunities working on oil rigs etc.

  highers GDP.

6.1b - which factors make it hard for a country to break out of poverty (just name them)

• debt

• trade

• political unrest

6.1b - how does debt make it hard for a country to break out of poverty?

Debt =

• many LIDCs have borrowed money to pay for development projects.

• Poverty has meant most of these haven’t been paid back, but some donor countries have cancelled or reduced the debt to help LIDCs.

• Debt is a barrier to development because it means LIDCs waste money paying countries back, rather than developing their own services.

6.1b - how does trade make it hard for a country to break out of poverty?

Trade =

• global trade favours richer countries. rich countries form trading groups called blocs which LIDCs cant join

• TNCs are based in LIDCs, where workers are exploited.

• For LIDCs to develop, they need to receieve a fair income for the products that they produce (fair trade)

• it is easier to trade manufactured goods and services (e.g. trucks) than primary resources (e.g. vegetables). and LIDCs only trade primary resources.

6.1b - how does political unrest make it hard for a country to break out of poverty?

Political unrest =

having a corrupt government means that LIDCs cant develop because…

• ACs do not want to trade with unstable governments,

• corruption means there is less development into internal services.

• Civil wars drain a country’s resources and it is costly to repair infrastructure that has been damaged

• if aid is given to a government of a country in a civil war, the aid money is not always spent on services. sometimes corrupt governments use it to spend on weapons.

6.2a - influences of development in Ethiopia in the 70s and 80s

• 1974 - 1981 = 1 million people died in civil war (social, political)

• 1984 = 1 million people died because of drought and famine (social)

6.2a - influences of development in Ethiopia in the 1990s

• 1991 = communist rule, the derg, lost power, became democratic nation (political)

• 1990s = government allowed farmers to buy imported fertilisers and machinery without tax (economic)

6.2a - influences of development in Ethiopia in the 2010s

• agriculture increased (economic)

• more support from USA (political)

• stable government meant ACs were more attracted to trade with Ethiopia (political → economic)

• more trust between locals and authorities, so less riots (political + social)

6.2a - describe each of the stages of Rostow’s model

• Stage 1 - most people are employed in agriculture. Not much money is being made by the country and there is little trade.

• Stage 2 - lots of people are still employed in agriculture but there is machinery. Infrastructure like roads and power. International trade. 

• Stage 3 - rapid intensive growth. Large scale industrialisation. Increasing wealth. 

• Stage 4 - economy grows -> wealthier people + better standard of living

• Stage 5 - everyone has disposable income. High levels of consumption. Lots of trade

6.2a - Which level does ethiopia fit into on the rostow’s model + why

• Ethiopia fits into Stage 2

• because its top exports are coffee and vegetables.

• It makes most of its money from agriculture

• the government encourages this (in the 2000s they allowed farmers to import fertilisers and machinery tax-free).

• However if you look at it from a social perspective rather than economical you could argue that Ethiopia is in Stage 1 since 70% of people live in rural areas.

6.2a - which MIllenium development goals has ethiopia attempted to reach

• “Achieve universal primary education”

• “Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty”

• “Improved maternal health”

6.2a - how has ethiopia attempted to reach MDG “achieve universal primary education”

• 96% of children go to primary school. 

• However literacy rate is still low, at 36%

• There are more males than females in school

6.2a - how has ethiopia attempted to reach MDG “eradicate extreme hunger and poverty”

• population living in poverty has dropped from 49% to 29%

• However 40% of children are still malnourished 

• 28% of the population have insufficient access to food

6.2a - how has Ethiopia attempted to rach MDG “imrpove maternal health”

• 55% of women now have access to contraception

• Maternal mortality has dropped to 23% due to better care

• Age of mothers is increasing due to Less forced pregnancies

6.2b - what is Ethiopia’s international trade like? and how does this affect development

• Ethiopia imports more than it exports so it is in a trade deficit

• The top exports are in the primary sector - coffee, vegetables, oilseeds and livestock. 

• To move into stage 3 of Rostow’s model, the trade deficit must be reduced so that Ethiopia can spend more money in improving infrastructure, education and healthcare

6.2b - the benefits of TNCs in Ethiopia

• Hilton Addis Ababa grants 150 three-month apprenticeships to local people.

  • This helps employ some of the 1.4 million Ethiopianas searching for jobs

• Employees receive free gym memberships and two weeks of paid holidays

• Hotels in Ethiopia will contribute £2bn to the GDP in 2024

• If ethiopia makes more money through tourism, it will diversify the economy, Meaning it is no longer 80% dependant on primary resources.

6.2b - drawbacks of TNCs

• lots of the profits are ‘leaked’ back to the US, meaning that they make more money than Ethiopia

• Jobs are seasonal, low-paid and have long hours. This harms the peoples welfare

• Too rapid of an increase in tourism

6.2b - the drawbacks of TNCs … what is the impact of ‘too rapid of an increase in tourism’

• clashes between locals and foreigners,

• spiralling prices which locals cannot keep up with,

• increased crime

6.2b - advantages of international trade + debt relief.

• Helps rebalance global inequality

• It is repayment for the benefits ACs got from colonialism

• Everyone should have access to the essentials of life

6.2b advanatges of internional aid and debt relief … give an example of where this has happened

• in 1995 Ethiopia was $10bn in debt,

• but by 2012 this reduced to $7bn thanks to debt relief.

• This reduction meant that the government could spend more money on healthcare and education services, rather than paying back ACs

6.2b - disadvantages of international trade and debt relief

•  it encourages dependency on other countries

• Donors may decide what aid to give and this is not always what is most needed (solar panels example)

• It may be given to a corrupt government who use it to pay for wars or weapons 

• Even after debt relief, Ethiopia still needs more than $500 million / year of aid

6.2c - advantages of an example of top down aid

• The Gibe III Dam on the Omo river supplies electricity to half of Ethiopia

• Dispatchable energy can be exported to Kenya and Sudan, increasing GDP

• The electricity generated from the dam is renewable, so good for environment 🙌🙌

6.2c - disadvantages of an example of top down aid

• The dam reduces volume of water in the river.

  • 200,000 people rely on the Omo River for farming and animal herding, so this will affect them

• Tribes cannot use the land for crops because there is less water

6.2c - advantages for one bottom-up strategy

goat scheme run by farm africa

• provides 3 goats to 7000 women

• This is good because goats are well-adapted to the harsh conditions and can eat plants that grow in the poorest of soils, meaning they will not die and prove the scheme worthless

• Goats provide milk and kids to sell, generating enough income to feed a family for 1 year, plus send a child to school

• The manure from goats can help fertilise soil, increasing crop yield

• When the goats reproduce, it gives the same opportunities for improvement to different women. So the cycle is continuous

6.2c - disadvantages for one bottom up stragety

• caring for a goat can be expensive and people want to prioritise their own nutrition and shelter over the goat. This means the goats may die quickly

• Goat’s hooves can break up soil as they walk, increasing erosion during dry season which can negatively affect crop yield