Global Development Revision

What do we mean by ‘development’?

Development is the word we use when exploring standards of living and quality of life across the world. By

exploring this, we can compare countries to one another.

What factors contribute to development?

Factors affecting

development

Economic factors (money)

Personal wealth, Gross

National Income (GNI) per

capita, the cost of living,

employment rates and job

security

For example, the GNI per

capita in the UK is $41,258,

whereas in India it is $7680.

Social factors

Access to health, education and housing.

775 million people globally are

illiterate (can’t read or write)

400 million people do not have access

to essential healthcare

1.6 billion people live in inadequate

shelter.

Food and Water Security

795 million people

in the world do not

have enough food

to lead a health life.

785 million people

lack basic drinking

water.

Technology

Electricity, internet access, better

industrial machinery.

It is estimate 5 billion people

have basic access to technology.

Many use intermediate

technology which does not

require electricity.

Cultural factors

Democracy, work-life balance,

religion and freedom.

1/3rd of the world’s

population (2.6

billion) live under

governments that do

not provide them with

freedoms (e.g. right to

vote)

1. Suggest two differences in global development

One difference is ____________________________________________________________________________________

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How do we measure development?

As development covers lots of issues that affect quality of life and standards of living across the world, we have

come up with ways of quantifying development (putting it in numbers) . This helps us to compare countries more

accurately and also examine development within a country more accurately.

Single measures of development are measurements that only measure on thing.

Composite measures of development are measures that include more than one thing.

Per capita is often added to the end of a measurement, this means per person.

Below are a number of measurements you are required to know for your GCSE exam:

Economic measures of development (measures that look at money)

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total value of goods and services produced within a country per year.

GDP per capita divides the GDP of a country by the amount of people in its population.

Gross National Income (GNI) measures the total amount of money earned by a nations people and

businesses. GNI per capita measures the total average income of a country per person.

GINI coefficient measures income inequality out of 100. A high number indicates a really unequal

distribution of income and a low value indicates greater equality.

Human measures of development:

Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite measure of development as it includes three things; life

expectancy, years of education and GNI per capita. It ranges from 0 to 1 (1 being the most developed).

Political measures of development:

Corruption Perception index (CPI) grades countries from ‘highly corrupt’ to ‘very clean’.

Other measures of development:

Name Explanation Strengths/limitations

Birth rate Number of live babies born per thousand women. A low birth rate is an indication of good healthcare and equality amongst men and women.

Infant mortality rate Number of babies who die under the age of 1. High infant mortality usually means poor access to health care services.

Literacy rate The % of adults who can read and write. Developed countries tend to have well educated populations as they have the money to invest in schools.

Access to safe water The % of people who can get clean water. Poor access to drinking suggests low levels of development.

Life expectancy The average age a person will live to Low life expectancy suggests low levels of development.

Study the table.

2. In which country would you expect quality and life and standard of living to be low. Explain your answer.

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Uneven Development Globally

Uneven global development is often represented through a choropleth map. A choropleth map uses colours to

highlight varying degrees of the one thing it is looking at. Below is an example of a choropleth map displaying GNI

per capita.

You may be required to describe the distribution of factors that contribute to uneven development. You can do this

using a specific formulae: trend, evidence anomaly.

Describe the distribution of GNI per capita.

Trend: GNI per capita is unevenly distributed around the world. The countries with the highest GNI per capita are

north of the tropics of cancer and south of the tropics of Capricorn, whereas the lowest GNIs are usually between

the tropics.

Evidence: For example, North America has a GNI of roughly $54,840 and Australia 441,1330. Whereas in eastern

Africa, GNI per capita is lower than $9000.

Anomaly: However, Saudi Arabia in western Asia does not fit the trend as it has a GNI per capita of roughly $41,330.

3. Describe the distribution of countries with a very high HDI.

Measuring inequality within a country: the United Kingdom

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why?

The landscape in the north is more challenging which makes it difficult to build on. There are lots of steep

slopes and it has a colder and wetter climate whereas in the south the land is gentler and the climate is

warmer.

De-industrialisation: this was one of the biggest challenges to face the north of the UK where their economy

was dependent on industrial jobs such as vehicle construction, textile industries. The north has lots many

jobs and has struggled to restructure its economy.

Economic factors: transport, education, health and communication links in the south are well established,

whereas the north has lagged behind. The amount of money the government invests in vital services fell by

£6.3 billion in 2010 in the north but increased by £3.2 billion in the south.

Explain two factors that have led to spatial variations in development within the UK.

Students in the North of the

UK receive lower GCSE

qualifications. 52% of students

in the north achieve A*-C

compares to 61% in the south.

Average life expectancy is

lower in the north of the

UK. In Scotland it is 77

years whereas in the

south-east of England it is

81.

Average income is higher

in the south. A person can

expect to earn upwards of

$21,000 in the south

compared to $19,000-

$21,000 in Scotland. However, the cost of living

is much higher in the

south. This is relative to

their earnings.

House prices are cheaper in

the north, however, this is

relative to their earnings.

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Factors affecting development

Landlocked countries

Transporting goods across the ocean through shipping containers has changed the world’s economy.

It is a cheap and easy way to sell goods. However, countries with no coastline cannot directly

access a port which may damage their economy. There are 45 landlocked countries and the

majority of them are poor. Coastal countries can increase their income through trade, which can

in turn be invested back into the country.

Natural disasters

Examples of natural disasters are earthquakes, volcanoes and hurricanes. They cause

Lots of damage to a country. Money that could be invested in social and economic development

is used to recover from natural disasters. Poor living conditions created by an earthquake allow

disease to thrive, pollute water resources, destroy housing and food supplies. As a result, more

people die from natural disasters in poor countries compared to rich which further increase

inequality.

Colonialism

In the 19th and 20th century, European countries practiced colonialism. This means they would take

over another country and exploit it for money. The country being taken over would be called a

colony. Africa had lots of natural resources such as oil, gas, timber, diamond and gold. The European

countries took lots of these natural resources to fuel their own economic development. Eventually,

90% of Africa was ruled by 7 European countries. Africa’s own development was stunted

(ignored/rejected) as a result as they could not use their natural resources to invest in their own

development.

Social investment

A government that prioritises spending money on education, healthcare and infrastructure such as houses,

transport, roads will provide a better quality of life for the people living in that country. If a population

has a good education, they can get better jobs, earn a decent standard of living and provide for their

families. If there is a strong healthcare system, then they can get help when they are ill. A corrupt

government will not do this and will often use the countries money to make themselves richer which

causes great inequality between standards of living between countries.

Closed economies

A country that has an open economy wants to trade their goods with the rest of the

world as this will increase their income. When a country has a closed economy, they do

not want to trade as much with the rest of the world. As a result, their economic

development is slower than those countries with open economies. This discourages

something called Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). This is when a business decides to

invest money or set up a business in another country. They might not do this in a closed

economy as they will not earn a lot of profit. As a result, the country loses more money.

Strategies to reduce uneven development

Aid:

World Trade No country is self-sufficient in the full range of raw materials (food, minerals and energy) and manufactured goods that are needed by its inhabitants. To try to achieve this, countries must trade with one another. Trade is the flow of commodities from producers to consumers, and it is important in the development of a country.

Raw materials, goods and services brought by a country are called imports, and those sold by a country are exports. The difference between a country’s imports and exports is known as its trade balance. One way for a country to improve its standard of living and to grow more wealthy is to sell more goods than it buys. Those countries that do will have a trade surplus, allowing them to become richer, while others will have a trade deficit, making them poorer and likely to fall into debt. For example, India’s trade in services accounts for 30% of its exports and only 10% of its imports which is a trade surplus.

The Indian economy has grown strongly over the past 10 years. It has been opened up to foreign trade and as a result, foreign direct investment (FDI) has increased too. It did this by reducing its barriers to trade such as improving infrastructure and reducing its tariffs (a tax on imports or exports) which would make a country less likely to trade with them.

Fair Trade

There is a wide imbalance of trade between the LICs and the HICs. This is mainly because: ● LICs export mainly primary goods such as foodstuffs and raw materials- primary goods are usually sold

to the HICs at low and often fluctuating prices

● The HICs process primary good, which they either possess themselves or obtain from LICs, into secondary (or manufactured) goods – secondary good are sold at high and usually steady prices

Fair trade aims to connect disadvantaged workers with the consumers of their product, essentially cutting out the middlemen who would take a large profit of the product. Fairtrade then certifies that standards have been met by the farmers, workers and companies that are a part of the supply chain and license the product with the fair trade mark.

Debt Relief

LICs borrow money from HICs to pay for large infrastructure projects. As a result, they have to repay the millions borrowed over a number of years. Making these repayments means they have less money to invest into the economy, healthcare and education. It is a never-ending cycle. The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative was established in 1996 by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to reduce or cancel debts. This allows the country to use the money to invest in key social services and the economy.

4. Describe two ways in which the scale of global inequality can be reduced

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Top down and bottom up development

Case study: India

Top-down development

Top-down development is referred to as ‘top-down’ as it involves powerful organisations such as governments

and transnational corporations (TNCs). Experts on issues relating to development and also the government of

the developing country get together to plan a project which identifies the needs of a country (e.g. to develop

energy sources, transport or improve food and water security). This project will aim to increase the wealth of

the developing country and provide important resources. As a result, they are very expensive and can be difficult

to fund. However, the projects can result in economic growth, increased job opportunities and therefore

increased wealth. However, top down development projects do not tend to plan the project with the help of the

local community – they impose the project on them instead.

Case study: the Sardar Sarovar Dam.

The Sardar Sarovar Dam in India is one of the world’s largest dams, covering four major states. The

objectives were to encourage development by providing drinking water and hydroelectricity to cities, to

irrigate (water) farmland to feed a growing population and to store rainwater for use of during the dry

seasons.

The dam is multipurpose. The dam is projected to provide drinking water for over 40 million people by

2021 and will also be used to irrigate (water) 1.8 million hectares of farmland, especially for drought

prone areas. It has also been beneficial in that it serves as a source of hydro-electricity to areas with

limited access.

However, for this to have happened, 234 villages had to be flooded, forcing 320,000 people out of their

own homes. These people often live in rural areas, and they have found that the hydro-electricity is too

expensive to afford and so only more well of people have been able to benefit. Locals have also argued

that good quality farmland has been flooded, resulting in a loss of livelihood.

Bottom-up development

Bottom-up development is referred to as ‘bottom-up’ as it involves local communities and charities/non-

governmental organisations (NGOs). They often target the poorest of communities and are focused on

the needs of local populations and how a long-term, sustainable solution can be arranged for them. As a

result, they often use locally sourced materials. This means that if problems arise, they can be fixed by

local communities cheaply.

Case study: The Water Project: Wells for Life

The Water Project is partnered with Wells for Life to help bring clean water to the poorest communities in

India. They drill down into the ground to access fresh water

The project is delivering fresh drinking water to thousands of the poorest people in India. Not only do

they have access to water, but they are being educated about the importance of hygiene practices. Wells

for life use the expertise of professionals trained in engineering and construction, and then teach the

local communities how to install and fix the wells. This gives them ownership of the project and helps

them to accept it too. It also provides a cheap, long term solution to a long-term problem. With fresh

drinking water, people can improve their health, children can go to school as they don’t have to collect

the drinking water and overall quality of life will be improved.

Often, the success of such projects depends on the ability of the community to come to a decision and

work well together. As it is community focus, it is unable to affect change on a national scale – however,

they do work all over the country. It can also be an issue if the project hasn’t been planned properly as

this can delay the opening of the wells or prevent them from opening in the first place however, this is

uncommon.

5. Compare the characteristics of top-down and bottom-up development strategies

Your answer:

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The Core-periphery model

Economic growth and

development are rarely even.

Core = capital city, chief

port, major industries

and urban areas, most

services and investment

Periphery = fewer jobs

and services, less

investment, levels of

wealth decrease with

distance from the core.

The core forms the most prosperous and developed part of a country or region. It is likely to contain the

capital city, the chief port (if the country has a coastline) and major urbanised and industrialised areas.

Usually, levels of wealth, economic activity and development decrease with distance from the core so that

places towards the periphery become increasingly poorer.

1. Economic activity in the core continues to grow as it attracts new industries and services (banking,

insurance, government office’s). As levels of income and technology increase, the region will be

able to afford schools, hospitals, shopping centres, good housing and modern transport.

2. Meanwhile, in the periphery jobs will be relatively few, low paid, unskilled and mainly in the

primary sector, while services and government investment will be limited. These push factors force

people to migrate towards the core

Differences between the core and periphery in India

1. Wealth:

Bihar is the poorest region in India with a per capita income of $730, compared to $7,005 in Mumbai.

2. Job type:

In Bihar the majority of the population working agriculture which is low paid. There are some jobs in the

secondary sector e.g. metal industries. In Mumbai there is a wider range of jobs, it is home to a number of

international banks, followed by Bollywood the world’s largest film industry. There is also a large industry of

chemical and metal plants and transnational corporations such as Volkswagen and Walt Disney.

3. Population structure:

Mumbai’s median age is 27 years old, whereas Bihar’s median age is 20. Many people are migrating from Bihar to

India to find work.

4. Landlocked:

Mumbai is on the west coast of India and has access to major trading ports whereas Bihar is in north-east India and

is bordered by 3 Indian states and the country Nepal.

5. For a named developing country, explain the differences between the urban core and the rural periphery.

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Demographic change

As a countries economy grows, the demography (the

characteristics of the population) predictable changes.

Low income country: high birth and death rates

Middle income country: falling death rates, rising birth

rates

High income country: low birth and low death rates

A population pyramid breaks down the age range of the people

with a country and separates them into gender.

There are three main categories 1. Young dependent population 2. Economically active population 3. Elderly dependent population

India in the 1990s India in 2010.

Positives and negatives of rapid development

Positives

Negatives

Improve access to electricity supply

Improved sanitation, people are becoming more educated on the importance of sanitation which is

reducing illnesses e.g. water borne diseases such as cholera. Household sanitation coverage in rose

13% in India between 2016 -2018.

Increasing affordable housing

Increasing access to healthcare due to improved infrastructure and funding leading to a healthier

population. In India. In three 1990s, life expectancy in India was 59 years, it is now 68 years.

Improve HDI (education, years of schooling, life expectancy): in the 1990s it was low at 0.4 it is

now 0.6

Access to water in 1990 was 68% compared to 88% as of 2015.

Improved public transport which leads to better access to jobs and key services e.g. schools and

hospitals.

Years of schooling in India has increased by 4.1 years since the 1990s.

Air pollution – Delhi is the most polluted city in the world. This reduces life expectancy for 600

million Indians who live in cities by 3.2 years.

Water pollution – 1/3rd of the sewage in India goes untreated and a number of rivers which are used

for water supply, fishing, hygiene and irrigation (watering) of land are more polluted than ever. The

number of polluted rivers rose from 121 in 2010 to 275 in 2015.

Deforestation and desertification – commercial logging, urban and industrial expansion, mining and

the construction of reservoirs are leading to deforestation which further affects the climate as there

are less trees to absorb co2. Desertification (land turning into desert) is increasing and is caused by

over farming and increasingly warmer temperatures as a result of climate change.

Climate change – India is the third largest emitter of C02 due to its heavy reliance on fossil fuels to

sustain economic development. Climate change may be the biggest threat to India’s economy – the

farming sector provided over a million jobs and will be severely affected by warming temperatures

and air pollution.

6. For a named developing country, explain why rapid development can have both positive and negative

impacts.

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Technology

Technological innovation is a key part of development as it leads to greater efficiency, research, further trade and

investment and access to resources. Technology in India contributes hugely to its GDP.

The I.T. sector is 13% of India’s total GDP

The digital economy generates $200billion a year.

However, there are great inequalities in access to technology. This is best highlighted by access to the internet in

India.

1. Urban vs rural: 337 million people in urban areas have access to the internet compared to 290 million people

in rural areas

2. Gender: 71% of men have access to the internet compared to only 29% of women

3. Age: Over 50% of internet users are between the ages of 16-20 years old, people over 35 years old is much

smaller at less than 20%.

Example exam question: Explain what effect the digital divide has on regional and national development.

How is the Indian government managing the impacts of

rapid development?

India’s urban population is growing rapidly and is expected to reach 600 million

by 2030. Its cities are already struggling under the strain of poor infrastructure

and inadequate public services as well as the negative impacts of rapid

development; air pollution, water pollution, deforestation and desertification,

greenhouse gas emissions and ultimately climate change.

The Smart City Mission

The government’s solution is the Smart Cities Mission. The government makes it

clear that there is no single definition of a ‘smart city’ however it is one that

information and communication technologies to increase the efficiency of how

a city operates e.g. transportation, energy use, wastage, access to water,

housing, healthcare and so forth. . It aims to be economically, environmentally

and socially sustainable. It was due to be completed by 2020 but the deadline

has been extended to 2023. The rural periphery of India, Bihar will be a part of

this programme

1. Adequate water supply Many problems relating to water supply include water loss from leaks and blockages, over usage

and consumption. Smart water systems include water grids that ensure the security of water

quantity that is safe for consumption. The quality of the water can be monitored more accurately

and transported where it is needed, straight to a person’s household.

2. Increased electricity supply: The Indian government has pledged to increase its use of renewable energy by double by 2022.

The government aims to increase the use of renewable energy sources, whilst also increasing

electricity grids across the country. This will help to create access to jobs and services which will

boost the local economy. solar power.

3. Improved sanitation:

This is focused on hard infrastructure such as sewerage, waste management and access to toilets

so that urban areas are not inundated with contaminated waste. A smart city will use data and

information to manage its sanitation issues e.g. monitoring when waste bins are full, treating faults

detected in sewage systems to ensure that dirty water is not distributed to people.

4. Affordable housing

Increasing the variety of affordable housing from low income to high income. They aim to

regenerate the slums and better plan for human settlement to ensure that cities are liveable. They

also aim to increase the number of green spaces to improve air quality.

5. Health and education

Smart cities are changing the way education and healthcare is provided to people. They are

creating online resources for school children to use, connecting the teacher to the student wherever

they are and ensuring that education does not stop at childhood by providing education courses

online to people of all ages. Healthcare will also be connected to a person through the internet.

Smart cities are attempting to increase communication between the patient and the doctor,

delivering prescriptions online and ensuring greater coordination between key services to improve

the efficiency of healthcare given.

6. Better public transport

Smart cities aim to reduce congestion and air pollution by monitoring the roads and parking lots. By

introducing smart roads, the government can survey roads that are heavily congested and warn

drivers to avoid such roads. This will reduce the number of people who are stuck in traffic, and

therefore the number of cars emitting fuel whilst in a standstill. They also aim to increase multi-level

car parks to reduce the number of cars on the road, they aim to monitor the number of people using

public transport so that they can deliver the public transport that is needed.

For a named developing nation, examine how the negative impacts of rapid development are being

managed

(8 marks). Example 1

In India, the government is introducing the Smart Cities Mission. They aim to tackle the increasing amount of air

pollution in India by using more renewable energy. This means that India will become more environmentally

sustainable.

The Smart Cities Mission is also increasing people’s access to water. They are doing this by increasing the water

supplies to areas that don’t have enough. India is also trying to make public transport better as

Example 2

One negative impact of rapid development is that as a country develops, it tends to emit larger volumes of CO2 which

reduces air quality. In India, poor air quality reduces life expectancy by 3.2 years in large cities. As a result, the

government, through the Smart Cities Mission aims to double the countries use of renewable energy use by 2022. As

the energy that India will rely on will be clean energy. This will also ensure that the 400 million people still without

electricity, will have greater access to it which they can use to improve their standard of living.

The Smart Cities Mission is also attempted to address the issue of access to water. Currently, 54% of the Indian

population face extreme water stress. As a result, India is using data and information to monitor their water grids. For

example, as the water grids will be carefully monitored, the authorities can be alerted as to when there are faults in

the pipes. This will reduce the amount of water lost. Additionally, by monitoring the water pipes, the Indian government

aims to re-direct water from areas which have a surplus to areas which are water deficient. Therefore, improving

access to clean drinking water which will reduce dehydration, the risk of water borne diseases and address inequalities

between water supply in urban and rural areas.

1. What information does example 2 provide that answer 1 does not?

Your answer:

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