what makes a country less developed? · clean water. this can affect agriculture and local...

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What makes a country less

developed?

There are economic, historical and physical causes of

uneven development

Last lesson we looked at the demographic transition

model and saw that different countries have different,

population changes structures and this is linked to levels

of development.

Now we are gong to look at the causes of why some

countries have not got to stage 3 or 4 development in

the demographic transition model


Physical causes

Landlocked countries are those which are only bordered by land. This

means they are cut off from sea trade, which is important for economic

growth.

This is a physical cause of slow development.

Physical causes are those things which are part of the natural geography of a country


Physical causes

Extreme weather such as drought, floods and tropical storms can limit a

countries growth.

It is expensive to protect the areas and rebuild after a disaster.

It can ruin crops and infrastructure.

This is a physical reason for uneven development but you could agree

human caused climate change is adding to this.

African countries are particularly badly affected


Physical causes

Climate related disease and pests can destroy a countries livestock and

causes premature deaths in humans reducing the workforce.

This is a physical cause of uneven development.

Humans could be blamed for spreading pests or technology could be used

to help solve the problem.

Tropical Africa, South America and Asia have more climate reltated

diseases and pests than cooler parts of the world e.g. malaria which is

spread by mosquitoes


Physical causes

Lack of adequate supplies of

clean water. This can affect

agriculture and local populations.

Having to travel to get clean

water results in less time to work

or go to school.

Dirty water can cause illness and

again impact on the economy.

This could be both human and

physical. In areas with low

rainfall it is a physical feature

but in some areas it is a human

issues due to lack of adequate

infrastructure.


Economic causes

Many low income countries (LICs)

rely on manufacturing to make

money. This is often low skilled and

low paid. The rich countries keep

the costs down by making products

in LICs and NEEs and the profit

returns to the HICs.

This is a human cause of uneven

development.

Economic causes are those things which are connected to the type of trade that a country is part of


Economic causes

Exporting primary products tends to be one of the ways in which LIC

countries make money. This is a volatile market and prices rise and fall

very often. This makes it difficult to develop as you are unsure of future

profits.

Also supply and demand for raw materials is unpredictable.


Historic causes

As LIC and NEE countries were often once colonies they can struggle with

gaining independence. This can lead to civil wars and struggles for power.

Corrupt political systems and the fallout from war can have a devastating

impact on a countries ability to develop its own economy.

Historic causes are the events that have happened to a country in the past that affect its trade and the way people live today


Task

Complete the task on the word document – you can cut and paste the

statements in to the table on the word document or copy them out in to a

table in your book

30 minutes


The consequences of uneven

development

There is an imbalance between rich and poor countries in the world, particularly in Africa and the Middle East .

The causes of this are due to low income, poorer health and migration.

The three are often linked as you can see in this diagram

Few jobs, leads to low incomes, and this causes poorer health. It can then result in healthy working age people leaving an area to find work elsewhere


Migration key terms

Key Terms:

Migration The movement of people from one place to another.

Immigrant A person who moves into a country.

Emigrant A person who moves out (exit) of a country.

Economic migrantA person who moves voluntarily to seek a better life, such as a better paid job, education or healthcare.

RefugeeA person forced to move from their country as a result of civil war or natural disaster.

Displaced personA person who is forced from their home, but stays in their country of origin.


Student task:

Look at the worksheet you have been given:

1. Read all the statements

2. Categorise them into wealth, health and migration

a. You could cut them out and arrange them into three

columns in your book OR

b. You could colour code them according on the world

document

3. Put a + or a – symbol to show whether they are a positive

or negative consequence of uneven development.

30 minutes

what makes a country less developed? · clean water. this can affect agriculture and local...

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