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Development Studies: Measuring Growth

The document provides an overview of development studies, focusing on the definitions, indicators, and classifications of countries based on their development levels. It discusses the characteristics of developed, developing, and newly industrialized countries, along with the reasons for their varying levels of development. Additionally, it highlights the challenges faced by these countries and the factors that contribute to their economic and social conditions.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
17 views9 pages

Development Studies: Measuring Growth

The document provides an overview of development studies, focusing on the definitions, indicators, and classifications of countries based on their development levels. It discusses the characteristics of developed, developing, and newly industrialized countries, along with the reasons for their varying levels of development. Additionally, it highlights the challenges faced by these countries and the factors that contribute to their economic and social conditions.

Uploaded by

manlulawren
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

DEVELOPMENT

STUDIES
[1] MODULE 1 NOTES:
Measuring & Investigating
Development

MASUNGA SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL


Module 1: Measuring & Investigating Development What is development?

TOPIC GENERAL SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES - Development is a process of change that makes people happier, freer, better
OBJECTIVES fed, richer and take part in decision making
Learners should be Learners should be able to:
able to: - Development is a process of change and growth in societies which improves
Development Explain the concept and - Explain the concept of people’s quality of life.
practice of development development;
within the context of their
social, economic and - Explain the following - Development is when the economy grows, standards of living rise, quality of
political environment. divisions: First, Second and life improves, wealth is shared more fairly and more people take part in
Third world, Newly decision making
Industrialised Countries, North,
South, Least Developed THE ASPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT
Countries and Developed
Countries; Societies develop when various systems interact to cause change. These systems are
called aspects of life.
- Give reasons for the differences
in the development levels in - Economic aspect of development is when a country produces more or
different countries; enough for everyone and gets richer or wealthier. This is characterised by
more industries, better improved technology and higher income.
- Identify and discuss different
development indicators - Social aspect of development is when people’s basic needs are fully met. For
including Gross Domestic example people will have better and more shelter, access to clean water.
Product (GDP), Gross National
Product (GNP), health, life
expectancy, education and - Political aspect of development is when people have more freedom and
energy consumption. justice in a country. This means that all the basic human rights are guaranteed
by law.
- Show why political aspects of
development are difficult to THE REASONS WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO MEASURE POLITICAL
measure; ASPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT

- Describe the characteristics of - The political aspects of development are difficult to quantify because are
the developed and developing intangible or immeasurable, for example, they can neither be seen nor
countries; touched.

- Analyse and evaluate theories - Political aspect of development is difficult to measure because most countries
of development: modernisation, prohibit independent human rights groups to monitor human rights violations.
dependency, sustainable
development and alternative
- In developing countries most people are illiterate and unaware of their rights.
strategies;
- Political aspects of development are affected by cultural or religious beliefs,
for example, women being marginalised or there are gender inequalities.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


- The issue of sovereignty makes it difficult to measure political aspect of THE GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONS OF THE COUNTRIES OF THE
development because countries belief that they are independent therefore SOUTH ARE AS FOLLOWS:
nobody can tell them how to treat their citizens.
-The geographical location of countries of the South is that there are found in
- Political aspects of development are affected by different political systems, Central America, for example, Mexico.
for example, dictatorship prohibits human rights because they are no voting,
no freedom of speech. -The countries of the South are found in South America or Latin America, for
example, Brazil and Argentina.
DIVISION OF THE WORLD
-The countries of the South are mostly located in Africa, for example, Botswana,
The world can be divided into three groups based on the levels of development, Nigeria, Ethopia, Kenya, Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia,
namely; Angola, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa and Cameroon.

1. Developed/ Industrialised countries/ Countries of the North -The countries of the South are found in South Asia, for example, India.

2. Newly Industrialised Countries (NIC’s) -The countries of the South are located in Far East, for example, Malaysia.

3. Less Developed Countries/ Countries of the South/ Developing Countries -The countries of the South are found in East Asia, for example, China.

A MAP WHICH SHOWS THE DIVISION OF THE WORLD INTO -The countries of the South are located in the Middle East, for example, Saudi
COUNTRIES OF THE NORTH AND COUNTRIES OF THE SOUTH Arabia.

DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

They can be divided into two categories based on the ideology that they followed:

 First World Countries/ Capitalist Countries

 Second World Countries/ Communist Countries

These two categories are also known as Countries of the North or Industrialised
Countries or High income countries.

Today the second category is almost non-existent because the countries have either
ceased to be communist or they have embedded capitalism in their mode of
production, besides Capitalism has now become a world system.

Example are mostly found in Western Europe, United Kingdom, France, Germany,
Fig.1 Spain etc
North America: USA and Canada
Japan, Australia, New Zealand.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


THE CHARACTERISTICS OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
THE ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THE COUNTRIES OF THE
Economic Characteristics Social Characteristics NORTH
 High industrialised  High standards of living
-The economic characteristic of countries of the North is that there is high use of
 High employment levels  High levels of literacy complex technology to produce goods.

-The countries of the North have high development of transport and


 High levels of income  Good and adequate social telecommunication networks or high infrastructural development.
facilities, for example, clinics/
hospitals and schools -The economic characteristic of countries of the North is that they dominate
 Highly developed international trade or they have high share of international trade.
infrastructure -The countries of the North have high income or high wages.
 High calorie intake or food
intake -The countries of the North have high energy consumption because people own
 High GNP/ GDP many electrical appliances such computers, televisions and refrigerators.

 Low birth rates and low -The countries of the North have high industrialization or mass production or high
manufacturing of goods.
 High energy consumption population growth rate
-The economic characteristic of the North is that they export finished goods and they
import raw materials.
 High levels of urbanisation
-The countries of the North have low percentage population depending on
THE REASONS WHY DEVELOPED COUNTRIES ARE HIGHLY
agriculture because few people practise commercial agriculture.
DEVELOPED
-The countries of the North have high GNP because they have many industries that
 Developed countries use advanced technology to produce goods and produce goods and services.
services.
- The countries of the North have high GNP per capita.
 Developed countries have long history of urbanisation.
- The economic characteristic of countries of the North is that they have high GDP.
 Colonialism is the other reason why developed countries are highly
developed.

 Developed countries are highly developed because of importation of raw


materials at cheap rates from Less Developed Countries.

 Developed countries are selling or exporting expensive manufactured


goods
 In developed countries, there are highly skilled and productive work
forces.

 Developed countries have control and domination of the World Trade.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


DEVELOPING COUNTRIES THE REASONS WHY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES ARE
UNDERDEVELOPMENT
Also known as;
 Less Developed Countries  The slave trade which depleted Africa’s human resources.
 Third World Countries
 Countries of the South  Colonialism /imperialism that exploited Africa, for example, took raw
 Least Developed Countries materials.
 Under Developed Countries
 Middle income or low income Countries
 Developing countries use backward or poor technology.
Example: Most African countries, for example, Botswana, Malawi, Zambia etc

South American countries such as Peru, Colombia, Nicaragua, Chile, Bolivia etc.  Developing countries depend on cheap raw materials for export.

Asian countries such as Iran, Iraq , Bangladesh etc.


 Developed countries set unfair international trading terms that
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES disadvantage developing countries.

Economic Characteristics Social Characteristics


 Developing countries depend  Developed countries have low  Developing countries have unskilled and less productive labour force.
on raw materials for export, standards of living.
for example, crop and  They have high levels of
minerals. illiteracy or low education  Huge foreign debts.
 Developing countries have levels.
low levels of industrialisation.  Developed countries have
 They have high levels of poor and inadequate social  Neo-colonialism, for example, domination of the economies by developed
unemployment facilities, for example, school countries through Trans National Companies.
 Developed countries have low and hospitals.
incomes and widespread  Developed countries have low
poverty. life expectancy..
 Developed countries have  They have low urbanisation
poorly developed levels, for example, most
infrastructure. people live in the rural areas.
 They have low GNP/GDP  Developed countries have few
 Developed countries have stable democracies.
dependence on subsistence  Oppression of women.
agriculture.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


NEWLY INDUSTRIALISED COUNTRIES THE LOCATION OF THE NEWLY INDUSTRIALISING COUNTRIES IS
AS FOLLOWS:
These are countries that have achieved industrialisation in the last thirty [Link]
used to be less developed. - The Newly Industrialising Countries are found in Southern Africa, for
example, South Africa.
For example, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, Brazil, Indonesia,
Mexico etc. - Newly Industrialising Countries are located in the Far East countries such as
Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, South Korea and China.
THE MAPS WHICH SHOWS GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONS OF NEWLY
INDUSTRIALISED COUNTRIES (NICs) - The Newly Industrialising Countries are found in South of North America, for
example, Mexico.

- Newly Industrialising Countries are found in Northeast of South America, for


example, Brazil.

- The Newly Industrialising Countries are found in South Asia, for example,
India.

- Newly Industrialising Countries are located in the Middle East, for example,
Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWLY INDUSTRIALISED COUNTRIES

Economic Characteristics Social Characteristics


 NIC’s have fast growing  NIC’s have rapid urbanisation
industrial sector  They have improving standard
 NIC’s have greater of living.
Fig.2 dependence on exports of  NIC’s are having higher levels
manufactured goods. of education therefore high
 They have rapidly literacy.
commercialised agricultural  They have improved provision
sector, for example, from of social services
subsistence to commercial  NIC’s have rising life
agriculture. expectancy.
 NIC’s have raising income  They have falling birth and
levels. population growth rate.
 They have emergence of new
Trans National Companies, for
example, Samsung, Daewoo,
Kia, all from South Korea.

Fig.3

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


THE REASONS WHY THE NIC’s DEVELOPED SO FAST - The challenge faced by Newly Industrialising Countries is that of fast growth
of the private sector which makes it difficult to be controlled by the
 The NIC’s have heavy investment in science and technology education. government.

 They have large scale foreign direct investment, for example, Multi- - Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of exploitation
National Companies/ Trans National Companies. of workers by the employer.

 Export Oriented Industrialisation based on the production of consumer - The Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of declining
goods for the world market. exports because of tough competition from the mostly developed countries or
in the world market.
 Foreign Aid from the developed western countries in an attempt to stop
the spread of communism, for example, South East Asia. - The challenge faced by the Newly Industrialising Countries is that of high
expenditure on imports and less on exports.
 NIC’s got loans from international financial institution, for example,
World Bank and International Monetary Fund. - Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of declining real
income.
 NIC’s have technology transfer from the Western countries
- The Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of
corruption.
 They have cheap labour costs that helped to attract foreign investment.
- Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of urban
 NIC’s had agricultural and land reform that helped to modernize and
poverty.
improve productivity.
THE REASONS FOR THE DIFFERENCES IN THE DEVELOPMENT
 They have heavy investment in modern infrastructure.
LEVELS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES
THE CHALLENGES WHICH ARE FACED BY THE NEWLY Explain why there are differences in the levels of development between
INDUSTRIALISING COUNTRIES
developed and developing countries.
- The challenge faced by the Newly Industrialising Countries is that of high
- The differences in levels of development between developed and developing
inflation rates/ weak currencies/ high fuel prices.
countries is that developed countries export finished goods whereas
developing countries export raw materials.
- The Newly Industrialising Countries faces the challenge of having foreign
debt or debt crisis.
- Developed countries have skilled manpower because they have many
educational institutions and developing countries have brain drain because
- The challenge faced by the Newly Industrialising Countries is that of the wide most of skilled people prefer working in developed countries.
gap between the rich and the poor or huge disparities of wealth.
- The difference in levels of development between developed countries and
- The Newly Industrialised Countries are faced with the challenge of
developing countries is that developed countries dominate or control world
dominance of the industrial process by Multi-National Companies who move trade whereas developing countries have less control over world trade.
their investment of the country.
- Developed countries have many Multinational companies which contribute
- Newly Industrialising Countries are faced with the challenge of depletion of
towards government revenue by paying tax and developed countries have
their natural resources or damage to the environment. huge debts because they have only few companies that export finished goods.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


- There is peace in developed countries whereas developing countries are
involved in political instabilities caused by wars and civil strife. - The factor that slows down development in developing countries is
dependency syndrome. This means developing depend on developed
- Developed countries policies are directed to high infrastructural development countries in order for them to develop.
while developing countries policies are directed towards poverty and disease
eradication. - Developing countries are involved in foreign debts which slow down their
development, for example, they get loans from financial institutions such as
- The difference in levels of development between developed countries and the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and developed countries.
developing countries is that developed countries use advanced technology to
produce goods whereas developing countries use simple technology to
produce goods.

- Developed countries have high skilled manpower whereas developing


countries have shortage of skilled manpower.

- Developed countries have created dependency syndrome in developing


countries by giving them aid or assistance, for example, foreign aid in the
form of grants and loans.

THE FACTORS THAT SLOW DOWN DEVELOPMENT IN THE


DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

- The factor that slows down development in the developing countries is lack of
funds.

- Developing countries have slow down development because of use of poor


technology to produce goods and services.

- The slowdown in development of developing countries is caused by lack of


skilled labour because of poor education.

- The factor that slow down development in developing countries is caused by


wars and conflicts.

- Developing countries have slow down development because they have high
populations.

- The slowdown in development in developing countries is caused by


corruption and mismanagement of public funds by most of the leaders for
their own personal benefit.

- Developing countries have slow down in development due to brain drain


because many skilled people in developing countries prefer working in
developed countries.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE


CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Section A

1. What is development?

2. Identify and define three aspect of development

3. What is meant by political development?

4. Give three reasons why political aspects of development are


difficult to measure.

Section B

1. Study Fig. 1, which shows the Newly Industrialised Countries (NICs), and
answer questions (a)(i) and (ii).

Fig.1

(a)(i) Describe the location of the Newly Industrialised Countries.

(ii) Explain the challenges which are faced by the Newly Industrialised Countries.

Masunga Senior Secondary School Development Studies Notes MODULE ONE

Common questions

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Newly industrialized countries (NICs) exhibit social characteristics such as rapid urbanization, higher literacy rates, and improved social services, which contribute to a rising standard of living and life expectancy . In contrast, developing countries often experience high illiteracy levels, inadequate social facilities, and lower life expectancy .

Dependency theory posits that the underdevelopment of some countries is due to their reliance on developed nations, which results in an unequal global economic system where resources flow from the poorer countries to the wealthier ones . This relationship hinders autonomous development as developing countries are often trapped in roles as exporters of raw materials and importers of high-cost manufactured goods, maintaining economic subservience .

The global political landscape affects the measurement of political development because differing political systems impose varying levels of restrictions on freedom and human rights . Dictatorships, for instance, may inhibit rights like free speech, making it hard to assess political development. Additionally, cultural and religious beliefs can influence political structures, further complicating measurement .

Factors contributing to the technological gap include the high investment in education and technological development by developed countries, while developing countries rely on outdated technology . Additionally, developed countries attract and retain skilled labor, whereas developing countries suffer from brain drain, resulting in a shortage of skilled workers to drive technological advancement .

Primary barriers to industrialization in developing countries include inadequate infrastructure, lack of access to advanced technology, insufficient skilled labor, and reliance on exporting raw materials rather than manufacturing . High foreign debt and the influence of neo-colonial practices by developed countries also constrain industrial progress .

Colonialism played a significant role in development disparities as it involved exploitation of resources from colonies, contributing to the wealth of developed countries while depleting developing nations . Developed countries benefitted by importing raw materials at cheap rates and exporting expensive manufactured goods . This historical exploitation led to disproportionate development levels between the colonizers and colonies.

Developed countries are characterized by advanced technology, high industrialization, high income levels, and a significant share in global trade . In contrast, developing countries rely on raw material exports, have low industrialization levels, high unemployment, and widespread poverty .

Foreign aid has significantly impacted the development of NICs by providing capital for investment in infrastructure and industry, aiding in rapid industrialization and modernization . Aid also helped curb communism, supporting Western-aligned policies, but it has also led to a dependency on external resources which can hinder independent economic policies .

Key indicators used to measure development include Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Gross National Product (GNP), health metrics, life expectancy, education levels, and energy consumption . Measuring political aspects of development is more challenging because they are intangible and difficult to quantify, countries may restrict independent monitoring of human rights, and political systems vary, affecting how rights and freedoms are perceived and implemented .

Urbanization in developed countries typically results in well-planned cities with comprehensive infrastructure, supporting high standards of living . In contrast, urbanization in developing countries often leads to rapidly growing cities facing challenges such as inadequate housing and infrastructure, high unemployment rates, and insufficient social services .

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