Development
Process of change on an international change or when a good change has occurred.
Development Introduction
- Measured by size, growth and also culturally and politically
- Countries are at different stages and within them, there can be enormous golf of wealth
- Selwyn points out the discrepancy between the dynamism of global capitalism and the existence of global poverty means we must rethink and question what is actually meant by development.
Introduction Statistic (India)
India had the most millionaires that any other country in the world but a significant number also live in absolute poverty defined by the UN as living on less than $1.25 per day
Three Forms of Development
- Economic
- Political
- Social
Economic Development
Involves industrialisation or the absence of such and the amount of economic growth that that country achieves
Poltical Development
Involves the extent in which the country has a westernised democracy as its political system and whether citizens have the freedom to control their own lives
Social Development
Involves Food and Water availability, shelter, Educational opportunities and Job opportunities.
Economic Measures of Development
- Most straightforward to measure D is to measure economic growth
- WB uses both GNP and GNI to measure development between countries.
- 3 indicators
Three Indicators of Economic Development
- )Gross National Product which is the total economic value of goods and services produced in an economy including income from overseas
- )Gross Domestic Product is similar but excludes income from overseas
- )Gross National Income is also similar but includes additional income from self-employed people paying themselves for example
Strengths of Economic Measures
- Snapshot indicator of economic differences between DC and LDCs
- Only slight different rankings if you use GNP or GDP but it is very different if you use GNI. Helps us gauge how healthy an economy really is by using them all
- GNI figures are closely correlated with social development. Typically the higher GNI per capita the better education and health care
- Collected annually and from most places/Easy to measure progress
Strengths of Economic measures Supporting Evidence
- )India in terms of GDP is the 6th richest country in the world but in terms of GNI it falls to 151th because of its large population, the fact it consumes a large proportion of goods it produces itself so it doesn’t export. America has a much higher GNP than GDP because many TNCs are based in the US. (2017)
3) Finland has one of the best education systems in the world and they have a GNI of $45,000. Switzerland has the world best healthcare system and a GDP according to the Human Development Index in 2016 of $58,000
Weaknesses of Economic Measures
- Implies that western concepts of materialism and consumerism are universally central to everyones personal happiness and a countries progress. Not deprived if they value other things like community and religion.
- No mention of inequalities within countries. Quality of life may be higher. Pickett and Wilson argue that economic development in western countries may be high but they are accompanied by social problems and unhappiness.
- Black argues that these measures ignore invisible and illegal ‘economies of subsistence’/Livestock, crops for personal use, prostitution, begging, drug dealing/Feminists argue that they do not value unpaid work undertaken in the home by women such as raising animals for consumption
- Pete and Hardwick argue that these sorts of measures actually say very little about development. Development produces ‘Walmart junk’ over schools then it isn’t development. The concentration of the wealth of the few.
Weaknesses of Economic Measures Supporting Evidence
- )Bhutan that uses the Gross National Happiness Index, a social indicator, to measure collective happiness as more important. Compensates for experiences of poverty. They have received attention because ranked one the happiest place to live and top. People are satisfied and live long and healthy lives.
- )The US if the third most depressed country in the world with 6.7% of the population suffering with it and it is also the most obese people in the world despite having one of the highest GDP’s in the world. NA and A experience poverty disproportionately despite high GNI.
Social Measures of Development
- ) Literacy Rates: Denmark has a literacy rate of 99% compared to South Sudan has a rate of 27% (WorldAtlas)
- ) Life Expectancy: Hong Kong has a life expectancy of 84 years in 2017 while Sierra Leone life expectancy is only 52 years
Strengths of Social Measures
+More useful than economic measures as they look at more than money and how it is distributed equally
+More factors than GDP
+Accounts for what citizens can achieve
+Can also reflect economic development by using literacy and mortality rates suggesting the quality of education and health service
Weaknesses of Social Measures
- Social change dependant on economic development so not an accurate refection
- Data from developing countries may be unreliable and difficult to confirm
- Also doesn’t measure unequal distribution within a country
Human Development Index
- Alternative Measure
- Sen (KF of HDI) development should be measured in terms of the ‘removal of various types of unfreedoms’ which leave individuals with little choice or opportunity to exercise agency.
- Considers the provision of Education, Healthcare, Life Expectancy and Childhood Mortality.
- The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) measure what they think is best in a country and puts it on a scale, giving each country a number based on it. The three are: GDP, Education (leaving age and literacy rates) and Life expectancy
HDI Example
- Norway has a score of 0.949, GDP of $67,614 and a LE of 82
- Central African Republic: A score of 0.352, GDP of $587 and LE of 51.5.
- Countries who score highly in one category generally score highly in others showing that the measures are interdependent.
Strengths and Weaknesses of HDI
+Widespread use means we can make comparisons
+Revels clear global patterns
+More holistic and balanced
-Arbitrary measure due to multiple ways of measuring health and education
-No indication in Education index about access to education
Alternative Measures
- ) Big Mac Index (How long it takes for workers in different countries to earn enough to buy a Big Mac)
- ) Gross National Happiness (Measures 6 elements that lead to an overall score of how content a country is with what they have)
- ) Happy Planet Index (Sustainability, showing nations ability to live long, happy and sustainable lives)
