Revision

Richer or
Poorer?

Is the NORTH / SOUTH divide still relevant?

Gross National Product (GNP) is the value

of everything a country produces,
measured in US dollars.

GNP

Gross National Product (GNP) is

the value of everything a country
produces, measured in US
dollars.

However a countrys GNP figure is not an accurate indicator of peoples wealth.

E.g. in 2006 the UKs GNP was close to Chinas, but with a population of over one
billion, on average Chinas people are actually much worse off.
A better way is to divide each countrys income by its population.
Gross National Income per capita (per person) is the average income of people
in a country, measured in US dollars.

THE TOP 21

Gross National Income

(GNI) is the average
income per person in a
country, measured in US
dollars.

THE LOWER
MIDDLE

THE BOTTOM

No data

Even in the 1970s when this map was developed some countries did not fit the
pattern.

Today, some countries in the South have developed so rapidly that many
peoples standard of living is more like Europeans, rather than the poorest in the
world.
Which LEDCs do you think are the richest in terms of GNI

Today the World Bank classifies countries like this:

DEVELOPED

DEVELOPING

Problems with using

wealth to measure
development

It is easier to collect data in wealthy

countries so figures may be more
accurate than for poor ones.

US $1 goes much
further in some
countries than
others.

Someone living on $10 a

day would be living in
poverty in New York, but
would be quite comfortably
off in some parts of the
world.

The data only measures

products that are bought and
sold. Food grown by farmers is
an important part of production
in many developing countries,
but this will not show up in the
figures.

Many people in developing

countries work for cash so
their work is not recorded.
The figures are only an average for each country
and do not tell us about inequality there. A
wealthy Indian or Chinese may be far better off
than a poor American

As well as making people better off, development is also about improving

the quality of peoples lives.

Birth rate
% access to clean water
Infant mortality
rate

No. of
people per
doctor

Average calorie
consumption

Literacy
rate

% employed in
primary industry

Indicators of development must be measurable.

% access to secondary
education

As countries become wealthier they usually become better developed, and

people also become healthier, better educated and live longer.
As well as making people better off, development is also about improving the
quality of peoples lives.
To measure development just using a countrys income would not give the whole
picture.

The United Nations Human Development Index (HDI) is one measure of

peoples quality of life.
It gives each country a score based on its peoples average life expectancy,
education and level of wealth.

Life expectancy at birth

Literacy rate

Years spent in
school
Education including:

Income adjusted for purchasing

power (how much it will buy)
Maximum HDI = 1

GNI per capita and birth rate

What type of
correlation is this?
It is a negative correlation.
The higher the birth rate, the
lower the GNI per capita

An anomaly is a figure that does not fit in with the pattern e.g. Romania
has a lower birth rate than expected, given its low GNI

1.Why is birth rate an excellent measure of development?

2.Why is death rate a poor indicator of development?
3.Why does GNI on its own give a narrow picture?

Make sure you

can answer
these
questions

4.Why do all indicators of development mask the true picture of

development?
5.What can give us a broader picture of development?

Standard of living

Standard of living refers to

how much money people
have. It is measured in
GDP per capita. Do they
have enough money to pay
for the basics of food and
housing? Do they fall below
an income of $1 a day the
global measure of absolute
poverty?

Quality of life

Quality of life is the degree of

well-being felt by people and
includes factors such a health
and happiness. It is based on
peoples perceptions and is
therefore difficult to measure.
HDI is an attempt to measure
Q of L, based on heath (life
expectancy) knowledge
(literacy and years spent in
school) and standard of living
(GDP per capita).

The big idea is...

uneven development

Environmental factors

Political
factors

AL
C
I
YS
PH TORS
FAC

What factors are

obstacles to
development?

Social factors

Economic
factors

HUM
FAC AN
TOR
S

1. Environmental factor

NATURAL HAZARD

UK in
1976

UK in
1976

Drought affects food and

water supplies and
vegetation. It can be an
inconvenience in wealthy
countries like the UK, but
in the worst affected parts
of the world like the
Sahel, drought can be a
matter of life and death.

Boscastle

Queensland,
Australia

Banglade
sh

Floods may cause

severe property
damage in developed
countries, but most
lives are lost in the
densely populated
lowlands of
developing
countries. The
poorest often live in
the places most at
risk.

Earthquakes and
volcanoes have less
of an impact in
developed countries
because their
buildings are built
to withstand
shocks, and they
have better early

2
o
o
3

(Figure rose to 26,000 people)

A lahar in Armero,
Columbia killed
22,000 people after
the eruption of
Nevada del Ruiz.
Early warnings
were ignored.

63 people died in the USA after

the eruption of Mt St Helens.
Early warning systems meant
the area was evacuated.

A case study
of a natural
hazard

On Friday morning, 8 November 2013, the

strongest tropical typhoon on record made landfall
on the southeast coast of the Philippines with
winds of up to 195 mph. The coastal provinces of
Leyte, Tacloban and Samar were hit first, before
the storm headed west through six central
Philippine islands.
Primary Effects
6,000 people may have died
11 million people have been affected by the storm. The UN say
Typhoon Haiyan has displaced nearly 600,000 people.
41,000 damaged or destroyed homes.
Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated by authorities before
the storm reached land, but many evacuation centre buildings could not
withstand the winds.
The typhoon caused a five metre storm surge with waves of up to 15
metres causing further destruction to coastal areas in the immediate path
of Haiyan.
As much as 400mm (15.75 inches) of rain.

Secondary Effects
Some survivors of the typhoon were wounded by debris and these wounds
become easily infected in warm, wet and filthy conditions.
With the chronic shortage of medical personnel and medicine, untreated
infections can cause death.
Heavy rain after the storm made the situation worse.
In response to widespread looting and violence in Tacloban, the
government deployed soldiers in armoured vehicles to regain order.
Long term
The World Food Programme (WFP) estimates
that 2.5 million people will require food
assistance in the Philippines for at least the next
six months.
Approximately one million farmers are expected
to be affected by the disaster. At least 67,000
hectares of rice crops have been destroyed,
reducing expected production by 131,600
tonnes.
Rice is the main staple food of the Philippines,
providing half of the populations energy
requirements. Consequently, rice prices across
the nation have soared.

Short term
The UN and countries including
the UK, Australia, Japan, Vietnam
and the US donated millions of
pounds in aid and sent supplies
and medical teams, but
distributing this evenly and
without causing further problems
(civil unrest) is a major difficulty
where potentially millions of
people require help.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS
Use a named example to show the impact of a
natural hazard on a countrys development.
(6)
Explain why environmental hazards have a much
greater effect on the development of LEDCs than
MEDCs.
(6)

2. Social factors

WATER

WATER: the worlds most precious

resource

Water
supplies
are
unevenly
distributed
between
countries
and within
them.

One in three of the worlds

population lives in a
country already suffering
from WATER STRESS,
where supplies are limited
compared to the

By 2025 global water use is expected to rise by

40%, when the UN expects 2/3 of the worlds
population will live in countries with moderate to
high water stress.
90% o
f wate
r i s us
for ag
ed
ricultu
r
e
espec
ially in ,
develo
pi ng c
ountri
,
w
es
o
r
g
s
n
o
ti
is
a
l
y
u
t
i
p
l
i
o
b
ila
a
As p
v
a
r
ate
w
h
s
e
fr
d
reduce
Global
consum
p ti o n i s
twice th
growin
e r a te o
g at
f popul
as peop
ati
les sta
ndard o on growth
f living
r i ses

Huge amounts of money

invested to ensure a plentiful
supply of water & reliable
sewage treatment

2.5 billion without

safe toilets

1.1 billion people

without access to
improved water.

DEVELOPED

DEVELOPING

Access worse in
rural areas.

100% access to clean

drinking water &
sanitation
Women and girls waste
hours every day collecting
water when they could be in
school or working to improve
their lives.

Unequal
access to
clean
water

Big differences in urban

areas between the
wealthy and those living
in shanty towns

URBAN

WOMEN

RURAL
72% access to
clean water in rural
areas

MEN

Better educated & more

opportunities as time not
wasted collecting water.

Water supply and health

Reduced ability
to work

Illness

Malnutrition
Low
productivity

Poverty

Clean Water

Healthy
people

Good diet

Work hard on
the land farming

How clean water can

break the
cycle of poverty
Money &
crops

High
productivity

What type of
correlations
are these?

Make sure you can

explain the link
between the
variable on the
graphs

3. Political
factors

.... can have devastation impacts on

development. They can cause:

Deaths
Displaced people /
refugees

The destruction of
infrastructure roads,
power supplies and
schools, as well as
farmland and factories.

Many disputes in LEDCs

Europeans drew up
boundaries that divided
peoples, and threw local
people off their land.
E.g.

Rwanda
Kenya

Worldwide deaths directly attributable to war

or conflict in 2002

President Assad
of Syria

President Mugabe
of Zimbabwe

Colonel Gaddafi
of Libya

Corrupt politicians enrich themselves

illegally at the expense of their
countrys development. When this
happens, money is not available for
education, health services, roads,
clean water and sanitation.

In Zimbabwe, highly
productive land that was
previously owned by largescale white farmers was
taken over by war veterans.
The countrys economy has
been almost completely
destroyed and inflation has
exceeded 1000%.

Political mismanagement and corruption can slow or

reverse development in any part of the world.
Zimbabwe was once
one of the most
developed countries
in Africa. Since the
1990s it has suffered
some of the worst
setbacks in welfare
and human rights as
a result of HIV /
AIDS and poor
government.

In recent years Zimbabwe has been the worlds fastest

shrinking economy. It is an extreme example of a
government that has failed its people.

International trade is dominated by the developed

countries. They have grown wealthy through trade. Some
of the wealthiest countries club together to form TRADE
BLOCS e.g. the European Union.

There are two big problems with trade:

The
pattern
of trade

Unfair
trade

The pattern of trade is a

problem for those countries
that depend mainly on
PRIMARY PRODUCTS

Primary products tend to be lower

in price than manufactured goods.
Developing countries tend to
export primary products at a lower
price, but have to buy in
manufactured goods at a higher
price, giving them a negative
balance of trade or a TRADE
DEFICIT.
E.g. iron ore is exported more
cheaply than steel is imported.

Prices go up and down on world market and may go so low that

producers do not cover their costs.

Prices vary on the world

market depending on
supply and demand.
Overproduction forces
prices down. Prices may
go so low that producers
do not cover their costs.
It is difficult for the
producers to plan ahead
e.g. as coffee bushes take
several years to grow.

CASE STUDY

Zambia is a former British colony. In the 1960s it was

one of the richest countries in Africa. Its economy
was based solely on copper. This is called
PRIMARY PRODUCT DEPENDANCY
On gaining independence the government borrowed heavily from the
World Bank to buy a 51% share in the copper mines.
BUT the price of copper fell from 1400 per tonne in 1974, to 498 per
tonne in 1975. This meant Zambias export earning fell dramatically.
Zambia then had to borrow more money to pay the interest on its
original loans. It went further and further into debt.

How can unfair trade hold back development?

How is rice growing

in Ghana affected by
American imports?

Rice farmers in USA are

supported by government
subsidies which means
they grow more than the
USA needs.
Some of the surplus is
exported to Ghana.

The rice sells for a cheaper price than

Ghanaian rice. This puts Ghanas rice
farmers out of business. Ghana now
produces only 6% of the rice it produced
20 years ago.

International trade rules say

Ghana must allow free
access to international rice.

How has Fair Trade

helped the banana
growers of the
Windward islands?

The Windward Islands joined the Fair

Trade scheme in 2000. The buyers
pay more for Windward Island
bananas and the farmers receive
and extra $1.75 per box above world
market prices. This is a social bonus
which helps to raise the standard of
living of individual farmers and of the
community.

 is a society of cocoa farmers in Ghana operating under

the Fair Trade system.
Individuals receive more money, but a portion is set
aside for community developments such as:

A water pump

Clean water

Less illness

A new school

Better education

Better jobs

KEY FACTS ON
POVERTY
Nearly one billion
people entered the
twenty-first century
unable to read a
book or sign their
name

Source: www.globalissues.org/article/26/
poverty-facts-and-stats

Globally, 146
million children
are malnourished
Source: World Bank 2007

One billion
people live on
less than US$1
a day
The poorest 20%
of the worlds
population live on
2% of the global
income
Source: www.gapminder.org/

Overcoming poverty
is not a gesture of
charity. It is an act of
justice. It is the
protection of a
fundamental human
right, the right to
dignity and a decent
life.
Nelson Mandela

How can
global
inequalitie
s be
reduced?

Change the
patterns of
world trade

Abolish
debt

How can
global
inequalities
be reduced?
International
aid

Increase
Fair
Trade

The reduction of global inequalities.

.. will require international

DEBT KEY
1970s
- many banks lent money to
FACTS
LEDCs to build projects such as
roads, airports and HEP plants, so
that they could build up their
industries , get rich and pay back
the
loans.
1970s
and 1980s - interest rates rose dramatically
and the LEDCs were not able to pay back the
interest on the loans. Money that should have been
spent on health and education was being spent
paying back the banks. Countries had to borrow
more money to pay off the interest on the original
1990s
loans. - the banks got back in debt repayments
over 4x what the British government gave out in
oversees aid.

DEBT KEY FACTS

2000 - International Drop the Debt campaign.
Britain cancelled the debts owed to it by the worlds
41 most indebted countries. However the IMF and
the World Bank refused to do the same.
2005- Make Poverty History campaign targeted
the G8 countries at a summit meeting in
Scotland.
The three demands of the campaign were:
Trade justice
Drop the debt
More and better aid

In what ways could a country such

as Ghana develop without the
burden of debt?

Without the burden of debt Ghana

and other LEDCs could invest in
education and health care to help
raise the country out of poverty

DEBT FOR
CONSERVATION SWAPS

What are conservation

swaps?
Swaps are agreements whereby a proportion of a
countrys debts are written off in exchange for a
promise by the debtor country to undertake
environmental conservation projects.
These were first set
up by environmental
groups in the 1980s
to reduce the debt
problem of poor
countries and to
promote the
conservation of
important
environments.

Between 1987 and

2001, 50 countries
took part.
Usually areas of
valuable land are
set apart for
protection,
especially tropical
rainforests.

The first swap

took place in
Bolivia.
A north
American
conservation
group took over
$650,000 of
Bolivias nation
debt in return for
the Bolivian
government
This
freesaside
up more
setting
a
money for
large area of
investment in
rainforest
as a
education, health,
nature
reserve.
farming, water
supplies etc, which
will improve the
standard of living
and opportunities of
ordinary people.

Guatemala,
Peru,
Ecuador and
Costa Rica
also took
part

Aid comes in different forms ...

goods such as machinery, food and
medical supplies.
people with special skills such as
engineers, teachers and doctors.
money to buy local goods, invest in
development projects or reduce a
countrys debt.
loans for big projects (which have to
be repaid).

Money, food, goods and

services given at times of
dire need

Edible commodities
donated to needy
populations

Emergency aid

Food aid

Aid that is given by a

number of countries and
organisations, like the
United Nations and the
World Health
Organisation

Multilateral aid
Development that meets
the needs of the people
today without harming the
ability of future
generations to meet their
own needs

Sustainable
development
Aid that provides support
for a short time,
sometimes when there is
an immediate need

Short-term aid

An independent
charitable organisation
that provides aid

Nongovernmental
organisation

Aid from one country to

another

Bilateral aid

Foreign aid that must be

used in the donor country
to buy goods and service
from the country giving the
aid

Tied aid
Money collected from the
public (and sometimes
governments) by nongovernmental
organisations

Voluntary aid

Development projects
that are imposed in
people from above

Aid that provides support Development projects that

over a long period of time start and work from the
to make changes that last grass-roots level

Top-down
development

Long-term aid

Bottom-up
development

Emergency aid helps people

recover from natural hazards
and conflicts in the
SHORT TERM

12th January 2010

Development aid aims

to improve peoples
standard of living and
quality of life in the
LONG TERM
Most aid agencies prefer
to invest in projects like
this, working with local
partners to identify what
is really needed.
If people are involved in the development of their own
community it is more likely the changes will be SUSTAINABLE

Voluntary aid comes from charities.

These are non-government
organisations (NGOs) which raise
money from the public.
They usually work closely with
communities, so aid is more effective
because it is based on local needs.

Bilateral aid is given by the

government of one country to
another. Sometimes this aid is
used for large-scale
developments such as dams,
which do not always meet the real
development needs of a country.

The Cahora Bassa dam,

Mozambique

Often this is TIED AID, as the donor governments specify

how the aid is to be used. E.g. they may sell goods or
services as part of the deal, so that much of the aid money
returns back home.

Many governments give

bilateral aid to friendly
countries for political
reasons, rather than those in
greatest need.
But governments are now
much more careful to make
sure their aid is used to
meet the needs of the
poor.
The UN sets a target of 0.7%
GNI to be spent on aid - but few
wealthy countries do so.

Multilateral aid is given by governments to international

agencies such as the World Bank, UNESCO and the WHO,
which then fund development projects. These agencies are
large organisations with lots of money to invest in
development, but are sometimes criticisesd for being out of
touch with peoples real needs.

The public are more likely

to give to emergencies,
rather than to help with
long term development
projects.

Aid can make weaker countries

dependent on stronger ones. In
the long term countries need to
develop their own trade and
industries to be self sufficient.

Sometimes food or goods sent

as emergency aid puts local
out of business, making the
problem worse in the long term.

Aid can link the rich world and

developing countries, but it
may also make some givers
feel superior.

Some aid is lost to

corrupt governments and
individuals.

Lack of infrastructure can

prevent development
happening as planned,
e.g. schools and hospitals
cannot operate without
roads and power.

The right kind of aid is essential, i.e. at a suitable scale, appropriate to the
level of technology and local culture, as well as being sustainable.

AID FROM CANADA TO TANZANIA

Bi-lateral aid

Tied aid

Top down development

7 large government farms were set up to grow wheat. Canada provided the
finance, advice and equipment. Initially this was free, but later they had to pay
for it. All spare parts had to be bought from Canada (Tied Aid).
ADVANTAGES: it made Tanzania self sufficient in wheat with a surplus left
over to export. This could help raise income to pay off debt of invest in
further development. Jobs were created on the farms. New skills were learnt.
DISADVANTAGES: it destroyed the way of life of the local nomadic farmers.
Wheat is not traditionally eater by Tanzanians, they grow maize which they
grind into flour to make bread. Wheat baked bread is too expensive for most
Tanzanians. The scheme had little impact on the ordinary Tanzanians.
Once the Canadians withdrew funding, Tanzania had to pay for spare parts
and new machinery from Canada.

AID TO
UGANDA
Bottom
up

development
Long term
development
Voluntary Aid
The village of Barlonyo
experienced one of the worst massacres
NGO
in Ugandas history when rebels killed over 300 people.
Villagers fled to refugee camps, where the felt safer and were
forced to depend on food aid. Now, there is peace in the area
and the villagers returned in 2006.
Action Aid an NGO have linked up to form a democratically run
cooperative. Farmers have an equal say in any decisions.
Almost all farmers in Barlonyo own less than two acres of land.
They couldnt afford to individually take their harvest to the
market and so were often exploited by middlemen, who bought
up the harvests cheaply and sold them for a profit. The
cooperative now enables farmers to share the cost of hiring a
truck improving their profits.

In 2008 they were able to sell their sesame seed crop for over
three times the amount they had received in previous years.
The extra income has rippled through the local economy and
farmers can now send their children to school.
NGCs have also helped by contributing items to improve farm
efficiency such as, ox ploughs, hand hoes and high-yield seeds.
The farmers have now created a seed bank to reduce their
reliance on TNCs for seed. Each farmer has to contribute to the
see bank to guarantee the availability for next season.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS
Explain how international aid can encourage
sustainable development in a poor country(ies)
(8)
Describe the features of a named development
project
(6)

1957
14
1
3

9
8

4
5

1
3

1
5

6
12

11

10

10 new countries
joined the EU in
June 2004.
Estonia
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Hungary
Slovenia
Malta
Cyprus
2 more countries
joined in 2006
Bulgaria
Romania

What
contrasts
are there
within the
EU?

The CORE

The PERIPHERY
(edge)

The core region has

some of the highest
HDI scores in
Europe.

WHY?

Biggest
population

Most advanced
industries and
services

Contains the original 6

members of the EU

Wealthiest population

The best
communication
s

There is a long history of

trade between these
countries

The periphery
region has some of
the lowest HDI
scores in Europe.

WHY?

The periphery of Eastern Europe

The 10 countries which

joined the EU in 2004
were all allies of the
USSR until the end of
communism in 1989.
Then many of their
industries collapsed
and there was rising
unemployment.
People faced
hardships with falling
living standards and
low wages.
Parts of Eastern
Europe are also remote
and have poor
communications.

A comparison of two countries in

the EU

GERMANY

BULGARIA

A positive balance of trade

(exports are of higher value
than imports)
Well established
industries e.g. iron
and steel and car
manufacturing e.g.
Volkswagen

Plenty of raw
materials e.g. coal
and iron ore

Factors
which have
made
Germany
rich

Good agricultural
land
leading
to high level of food
production

CORE region
of Europe

Good communications
with the rest of Europe

An original member of
the EU so it has strong
trading links with other
European countries.

Moderate climate with no

extremes or drought.

With the collapse of

communism many
state run industries
collapsed leading to
high unemployment.
Former communist
country and member
of USSR until the
collapse of
communism in 1989

Since joining the EU in 2004

many of the most able
workers have been
migrating west.

Factors which have

made Bulgaria one
of the poorest
countries in
Europe

Steep slopes and poor

soils in the Rhode
Mountains makes farming
difficult

PERIPHERY region of
Europe

Isolated. Poor
communication links
with the rest of Europe.

Few raw materials

therefore not a strong
base for industry.

Negative balance of trade imports greater in value than

exports

How can the

EU close the
gap in
development?

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)

The CAP includes a system of subsides paid to EU farmers. Its main purposes are to:
guarantee minimum levels of production so that there is enough food for Europes
population.
ensure a fair standard of living for farmers.
ensure reasonable prices to customers.

The CAP guarantees the survival of rural communities, where

more than half of EU citizens live.

The Urban II fund

This fund is for SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT in troubled
districts of European cities.
It aims to provide economic and
social regeneration .
Any successful idea in one city
is shared with others to try to
improve living conditions as
widely as possible.

The EIBs money comes from

the members who own it.
They contribute according to
their size and wealth.

Its main purpose is to invest in regional

development. Some regions are
suffering because of the decline of local
industry or reduced farm incomes.
Projects are usually locally based
and funds are used to train people
with new skills and to help set up
new businesses

Structural Funds
Structural funds support poorer
regions of Europe and improve
infrastructure, particularly transport
because that enables the economy
to work more efficiently.

Regions whose GDP per capita is

less than 75% of the EU average are
targeted. The aim is to accelerate
economic development so they catch
up with other regions.