Outline for 11/21: North-South Gap I

Classifying Countries

GDP per capita as an indicator

Poverty

Economic Growth

Mono-economies

North-South Gap: Worse or Better?

Classifying Countries in terms of Economic Development

North – high income, developed national economies

South – lower income, lesser developed national economies

Seems to imply a geographic role for economic development

Is there any geographic reason why northern countries should be advantaged?

1st World

2nd World

3rd World

Where did the 2nd World countries go in terms of the North-South divide?

What about the Asian tigers: Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea?

Lots of Variation within the Global South

GDP per capita as the standard measure of economic development

Allen and Sutton, Student Atlas of World Politics, 9th ed.

Focus on the Least Developed Countries: Poverty

Three degrees of poverty

Extreme poverty: $1/person/day

Moderate poverty: $1-2/person/day

Relative poverty – below some national standard

At least 1 billion people live in extreme poverty.

Where are they concentrated?

Poverty trap

Allen and Sutton, Student Atlas of World Politics, 9th ed.

Extreme Poverty Worldwide

How to reduce poverty and promote economic development: Economic Growth

Growth in what?

Small differences compound over time

Determinants of per capita economic growth?

investment share of GDP, secondary school enrollment, population growth

Two complications to simply focusing on economic growth

1.Fast growth leads to inflation

2. Internal (or domestic) income inequality

Kuznets curve

Other complications? Other important economic considerations?

Allen and Sutton, Student Atlas of World Politics, 9th ed.

Inequality Worldwide

Mono-economies

Defined as those producing one or two primary products (agriculture or mining)

Country/product examples?

Why is this a problem?

Resource Curse example

Ladder of economic developmentRung Key factors Countries?

Hi tech manufacturing, services K, HK

Heavy manufacturing More K, some HK, less L

Light manufacturing L, some K

Agriculture, mining L, R

Allen and Sutton, Student Atlas of World Politics, 9th ed.

Economic Development and the Structure of the National Economy

Is the North-South Gap Getting Worse? Maybe Yes

Is the North-South Gap Getting Worse? Maybe No