POSC 2200 International

Political Economy

Russell Alan Williams

Department of Political Science
 Unit Six: International Political
Economy
Poverty, Development and Human Security
Required Reading:
Globalization of World Politics, Chapters 28 and 29.
Bruce R. Scott, The Great Divide in the Global Village,
Foreign Affairs, Vol. 80, No. 1 (Jan. - Feb., 2001), Pp.
160-177.
Outline:
The Development Gap
Obstacles to Development
Alternatives/Solutions?
Conclusions
1) The Development Gap:
Major challenge in IPE?
Most states are developing countries
(LDCs, the Third World)
However, little development occurring (!)
Key concern because:
Interconnection of globalisation
Power of developing countries in IGOs
Morality increasing recognition of Human
Security
Development a contested concept?
Traditionally associated with:
Increases in:
Capital accumulation/savings
Per capita incomes
Skills and technology

Also:
Falling birthrates
Political and institutional reforms

And perhaps also,

More even distribution of wealth
= Critical perspectives and World Bank
Key measures?
GDP growth rates traditional focus
Inequality more critical focus
Measures Growth Rate:
World average = approx + 3% per year
Less than this is not development?

Evidence?
1970-2000 Majority of LDCs less then 3%

Exceptions?
East Asian NICs Four Tigers:
South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and
Singapore
Since 2000 a significant portion of LDCs
greater then 3%
E.g. China = more than 9% a year

However . . . . South still falling further

behind (?)
Measures Inequality:

Gap Minder
 Trends?
Average incomes going up . . . ?
However, gap between richest and poorest
segments of global population have often
gotten wider over last 30 years.

Implications for Development?

Political instability
Economic problems cause political
problems?
Human security?
Human Security: The security of people, including their
physical, economic and social well being.
1990s Traditional Security Human Security
=less focus on protecting states from foreign aggression, more focus on basic
human needs requires development???
First Supported by United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
Human Security is multifaceted:
Violence = citizens should be protected from physical violence of all
forms
Economic = citizens' basic material needs must be met
Food and health = citizens require access to sufficient nutrition and
health protection from preventable illnesses
Environment = citizens must have protection from environmental
harms
Community = citizens right to have traditional values must be
supported
Political = citizens basic human rights and freedoms must be
protected . . . And they are entitled to democracy(?)

Radical new way to see security! Very ambitious . . . .

Human Security: The security of people, including their
physical, economic and social well being.
Ideas have led to increased interest in:
Humanitarian Intervention
Development and Human Development measures

However, Human Security is seen differently . . .

LDCs and NGOs Developed

Countries (Canada)

Freedom From
Want Freedom From
Fear
Action: Address
economic &
development Action: Stop violent
problems conflicts (E.g. R2P)
Both are interconnected, but . . . they are not always addressed
that way . . . . Development neglected(?)
2) Obstacles to Development:
Optimism that development would be easy to
achieve in poor societies has declined since
1980s - many challenges, or obstacles, exist:
i) Legacy of colonialism: Sovereignty has
not resolved problems caused by imperialism
Political legacies:
a) Displaced existing state/cultural structures
Post Colonial states very artificial

b) Ethnic divisions
 Economic Legacies:
a) Colonies economies restructured to meet
imperial needs
E.g. Substance farming to cash crops . . .
Post-colonial economies:

Resource-export dependent (mono-

exporters)
Importers of basic foods

Urbanization and unemployment

Need for land reform?

b) Ineffective transportation links when colonies

became independent
Requires mercantilism in development policies?
But not allowed under GATT/WTO!
ii) Structures of global capitalism: Marxist
perspective form of neocolonialism has
replaced colonialism
MNCs dominate global economy:
Systematic exploitation of southern poor
Cheap labour etc.

Problem of Technology Transfer

Northern MNCs own technology
necessary to close development gap
iii) Legacy of the LDC debt crisis:
Debt Crisis: Post 1970s balance of payments
crisis for majority of southern states
Inability to finance trade deficits and pay
back loans
Result - most southern states have high ongoing
debt servicing costs
Implication: Economic surplus diverted to
debt rather than investment
 Required IMF/ World Bank help
Structural Adjustment Lending: IMF conditionalities
requirements for southern states in debt crisis
Imposed one size fits all type of development
strategy on states: The Washington Consensus:
Economic liberalization no mercantilist
development strategies!
Cutbacks in government spending
E.g. No food subsidies = no Human

Security
Thought to have failed in many countries =
reduced standards of living
Washington Consensus corresponds with period of poor
performance (1980s to 1990s)
3) Alternatives/Solutions?
Two Post-Washington Consensus
approaches to development?

a) Emphasis on Sustainable Development:

Belief that this would address some problems of

previous development strategies

E.g. Less emphasis on agricultural
commodities that lead to local shortages of
food
b) Emphasis on institutional development
Need for strong states undermined by
economic liberalism
E.g. Bruce Scott
 Example: Bruce Scott - The Great
Divide in the Global Village
Assumes development failing gap growing
wider
Northern states unfair
Protectionism in agriculture
Washington Consensus hypocritical

Argues development best supported by strong

states
Need institutional development
Need international IGOs that support state by
state strategy

=Copy success of East Asian Tigers in

rest of LDCs
Problems?
Neither emphasis on ecology or strong
states addresses the capital ($$$) problem
of southern states . . . .
E.g. without resolution of the debt crisis most
states will fall further behind
Asian Tigers never had debt problem!
Progress of debt relief has been very slow . . . .

E.g. Current Financial Crisis . . . .

4) Conclusions:
Development remains a problematic goal in

international politics
Increasingly unclear what it means

Increasingly unclear what it takes to achieve it . . . given

the structures of international politics and the self
interested nature of developed states
Can successes in East Asia be copied elsewhere?
4) Conclusions:
E.g. Millennium Development Goals: UN (2000)

initiative to set targets for global reduction in:

Poverty and hunger
Primary education
Gender equality
Health = Child mortality and communicable diseases
Environmental sustainability

A comprehensive wish list but where are the

resources to support efforts and is it
happening?
Progress on Millennium Development Goals?
Developing
nations are on track
to meet the poverty
target largely
because of progress
in China.
But in Sub-
Saharan Africa and
Western Asia the
proportion of
hungry people has
increased.
Globally, the
number of hungry
people rose from
842 million in
1990-92 to 1.02
billion people in
2009.
6) For Next Time . . .
Time: Friday April 10, 2013 (12:00 to 2:00)

Location: Gym

Format: Three Sections

1) Multiple Choice
2) Short Answer
3) Essay

Similar to mid term sections will be

weighted