HUMAN GEOGRAPHY : DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1 : VARIATIONS IN DEVELOPMENT IN THE WORLD

Terminologies

Development defined as the growth, expansion, progress and improve in the

economic and soil aspect, with improved standard of living and
better quality of life
Economic growth accumulation of material wealth which may lead to better quality of
life and improved standard of living
Standard of living Desirable living conditions like availability of goods and services,
access to electricity and clean water supply, affordable public and
private transport etc.
Quality of life Social well-being which is related to bodily comfort like sufficient
necessities like food and clothes which is associated with metal
happiness, which is actually the degree of satisfaction with prevailing
living conditions
Developed country A country with economic growth, high standard of living and good
quality of life
Less developed A country with a lack of infrastructure, poor economy, undesirable
country living conditions and a poor quality of life

Characteristics of Development

Complex with People from different industries/occupations have different

different viewpoints viewpoints
Eg. Economists  accumulation of material wealth
Political scientist  political changes (voting/elections) etc.
Ongoing process Dynamic with room for improve with both short term and long term
goals
Success or failure in goal attainment is determined by progress rate
Dependent on Rate of progress diff
several factors Slow development may be due to political instability/ natural
disasters/ inefficient implementation of goals
Eg. Political instability in Myanmar hinders its development
Eg. Tsunami in 2004 destroyed parts of Banda Acheh, hindering
development as funds have to be channelled for restoration and
rebuilding efforts
Wide range of Economic (income, GDP)
measurement Social (level of education, health, technology)
Demographic (life expectancy, infant mortality rate)
Political (freedom of speech, religion, women rights)
Emotional Labelling of countries is sensitive and controversial
Classification 1950s
1) First world (democratic countries)
2) Second world (non-democratic countries)
3) Third World (poor countries)
2000s
1) MEDCs (More Economically Developed Countries)
Eg. USA, Japan, Italy
2) LEDCs (Less Economically Developed countries)
Eg. Cambodia, Peru, Ethiopia, Somalia
 Core-Periphery Model

What is a core and periphery?

 A core refers to the richer countries, especially DCs like colonial powers.
 A periphery refers to poorer countries, especially LDCs like former colonies.
 Development of a particular country is initiated by its advantages such as better
employment opportunities in secondary and tertiary industries, presence of
infrastructure, thus being attractive to foreign investments (core)
 Periphery country is usually involved in primary industry with limited infrastructure,
with limited access to social services, thus lesser job opportunities
Process of core-periphery model
 Stage 1 : Before industrial development, each local centre is independent, with little
or no interaction with each other.
 Stage 2 : The peripheries provide the resources, enabling the core to grow.
 Stage 3 : A secondary core develops as it interacts with the core. The peripheries
continue to supply core with raw materials and labour.
Why periphery is supplying core with raw materials?
 Periphery lacks infrastructure and technology to process the raw materials that it has
extracted. Its people do not have the expertise to work in secondary and tertiary
industries. So, it would rather sell the raw materials to core at minimal profits.
Effects of core-periphery model
 Periphery provides core with cheap raw materials and cheap labour, thus enhancing
its industrial expansion and wealth accumulation in the core.
 Periphery is drained of labour as workers are attracted to better paid jobs in core.
 Periphery buys higher price value-added manufactured products from core due to
inability to industrialise due to lack of technological expertise and capital.
 Inflow of foreign exchange from sale of cheap raw materials insufficient to pay the
more expensive imports.
 Core develops at the expense of periphery, widening income gap between them.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Core-Periphery Model

Advantages
Serves as a useful guide for
development plans
Spread effect shows potential diffusion
of economic pull to periphery
Can be applied for planning between
core and periphery eg. Transportation
Decentralisation from core to periphery
stimulates growth of periphery , closing
income gap  enhances equitable
wealth distribution
Disadvantages
Fails to explain rapid growth rates of 4 Asian Tigers
Some periphery countries still depend on core
countries for trade and investments (eg Phillipines on
USA), indicating limitations of spread effect.
Failed to give indication of possible financial
meltdown in core (eg. Collapse in demand for
Singapore-produced electronic products in core
(USA)  contraction of Singapore’s trade by 35% in
Jan 2009)
Advantages and Disadvantages of HDI

Advantages
Used by United Nations Development
Programme to measure development level
of a country (High HDI = 0.800 – 1.000,
Medium HDI = 0.500 – 0.799, Low HDI =
0.499 & below)
Useful as it is a comprehensive indicator
talking into account economic wealth,
standard of living and quality of life, thus
being a more balanced measurement
talking into account most aspects of
development
Disadvantages
In LDCs, especially in rural areas, data is not
available easily, estimates of people’s income
due to informal activities may cause
inaccuracies and distortions in the final HDI
value.
Fails to take into account immeasurable
aspects of development reflecting quality of life
like religious freedom, freedom of speech,
human rights and sense of security
Time lag  Takes about 2 years to collect and
publish data, so date becomes outdated, giving
an inaccurate picture of the present
development level

Measurements of Development

GNP Total value of goods and services produced by citizens of a country in a

given year
GDP Total value of goods and services produced or incomes contributed by
citizens and non-citizens in a country in a given year
Income per capita average income earned by each resident in a country in a year
Literacy rate percentage of educated people above 15 years of age
Infant mortality No of deaths of children below 1 year per 1000 live births
rate
Life expectancy average no. of years a person in a country lives

Advantages and Disadvantages of GNP/GDP per capita

Advantages Disadvantages
Can be used to measure It is just an average figure and does not show individual and
the development of a regional income differences; does not reflect income gap
country
Can be used to measure Does not take into account cost of living (eg. Cost of living in
the economic Malaysia cheaper than that of Singapore); Inflation is not
development of a country considered
Does not reflect informal economic activities like baby-sitting,
home tuition
Does not take into account social and environmental costs
brought by economic growth
Economic Indicators
Heath Indicators
Educational Indicator
CHAPTER 2 : REASONS FOR VARIATIONS IN DEVELOPMENT

Historical Factors

Colonialism  Colonialism : act of exercising controlling influence by a colonial power,

the more power country, on a colony, a less powerful nation
 Colonial powers : Netherlands, UK, France etc who colonised to tap into
the supply of raw materials for manufacturing industries like rubber tyres,
textiles and beverages
 Less powerful tropical countries have abundance of labour and
favourable physical condition
 Aim of colonialism : obtain raw materials; control strategic trading routes
 Eg. Singapore, strategic location along Straits of Malacca and the
world’s trading route
 Eg. Netherlands colonised Angola to set up coffee, cotton plantations to
produce raw materials for sale in Europe
 French colonised Laos to exploit mineral resource tin, making little effort
to develop Laos economically and socials because it was land-locked
 While colonial powers became richer due to continuous supply of raw
materials by colonies for their profitable industrialisation, development of
colonies was slow because of neglect of education as well as emphasis
and large dependence on primary industry of agriculture.
 Scenario of Core-Periphery theory where rich develops and grows richer
at expense of poor
 Thailand, never colonised, world’s largest exporter of rice, economically
better off that most former colonies like Kenya and Indonesia
 However, colonialism has positive effects too. Countries like Singapore
and Malaysia benefited from colonialism due to their strategic location
and profitable trading routes established by the British, making them
sustain their development through their years with improved
infrastructure as well as emphasis on education

Physical Factors

Raw  Countries rich in raw materials like timber, minerals and oil tend to
materials develop much faster than countries with limited resources as they are
able to earn money from the sale of raw materials which is channelled to
improving infrastructure like schools, roads, water treatment plants etc
 Eg. Norway which is rich in timber and crude oil has GDP per capita of
US$ 95600 and the highest HDI value in the world
 Eg. Oil-rich Briunei has a GDP per capita about US$37,100
Exceptions
 Singapore has no resources but her success in industrialisation and port
development was due to her strategic locations, so it has a high HDI
value and GDP of US$37,100
 Nigeria which is rich in crude oil is a less developed country because oil
wealth is mismanaged by leaders for personal enrichment, developed of
urban areas instead of poor rural areas, environmental damaged due to
exploration of oil resulting in contamination of water
Climate  Climate : pattern in the condition of the atmosphere over a period of 30
years
 Temperate countries tend to have a higher HDI value and rank
 Tropical Sub-Saharan African countries tend to have very low HDI value
and rank
  However, with tech advancement, temperate crops can also be grown in
tropical countries as temperature and water amt can be controlled in
glasshouses eg. In Singapore. But this is usually done on a small scale
 Many less developed countries do not have the funds to invest in
modern farming technology
 Sub-Saharan African countries like Ethiopia vulnerable to droughts
resulting in crop failure and loss of income. Slow development GDP per
capita of US$324
 Not all countries can afford flood management and drought management
measures
 China’s Three Gorges Dam effective in reducing occurrence of floods
which can destroy properties, infrastructure, life and crops
 Countries which are prone to floods have low GDP per capita due to
restoration efforts eg. Bangladesh (US$506)
 Climatic conditions can be overcome using technology given that the
country has enough funds to invest leading to a greater level of
development

Economic factors

Cumulative  Core countries like DCs : initial development boosted by natural

causation advantages like favourable climatic conditions and natural resources
with availability of labour and capital
 Periphery countries usually populous LDCs which have abundance of
resources but lack technology and capital
 Cumulative causation : increase in wealth of core resulting from
movement of people and resources from periphery  increasing no. of
people in core  increased demand for goods and services  greater
demand encourages further investments  industrial expansion  more
and better jobs  incomes and wealth increase  infrastructural
improvement  enhancing its attractiveness to periphery areas 
further development of core (multiplier effect)
 Cumulative causation results in uneven development due to core areas
exploiting labour as well as being more attractive more investments
 Eg. Singapore’s industrialisation programme as well as relaxed
immigration policy attracts workers from periphery countries like
Bangladesh and Philippines, resulting in peripheries having drain of
labour, hampering their development
 Backwash effect on peripheries
 Spread effect : spread of wealth and technological knowledge to
peripheries eg. Money remitted by Bangladeshi workers to home
 Eg. Japan set up automobile industry in Thailand in 1990s. Thailand
benefited by acquiring automobile manufacturing knowledge and skills
as well as providing employment for locals  better income and more
wealth  increase in development level

Environmental Factors

Natural  natural disasters like earthquakes, floods and droughts cause great
Disasters damage to a country
 However, responses differ greatly between DCs and LDCs
  DCs : have resources and manpower to deal with and help victims
recover quickly eg. Hurricane Kartrina hit USA in 2005, USA responded
without external assistance
 LDCs : Need external help as they do only have limited resources and
manpower (eg. During volcano eruptions and earthquakes near
Yogyakarta, Indonesia, foreign aid was needed, with UN planning a 6-
month relief effort as well as World Bank pledging US$60 million)
 Eg. 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: Relief efforts poured into Sumatra for
relief efforts including Singapore, funds still being used for reconstruction
efforts despite economic develop.
 Eg. Bangladesh (floods), Ethiopia/Somalia (droughts) : limited funds
have to be diverted to relief efforts, further diminishing funds, hindering
development process
Exception
 Although Indonesia suffers from volcanic eruptions, the fertile volcanic
ash boosts its agricultural productivity.
 Low-lying Mekong floodplains subject to floods but they replenish fertile
alluvium, increase productivity and thus income of farmers.

Social Factors
Education  Assess the literacy rate of a country
 DCs : high adult literacy rate  wealth accumulation as ppl are engaged
mostly in tertiary industry (high-paying technological, managerial and
entrepreneurial positions) eg. Japan/UK/ Germany with a literacy rate of
99.9% with a high GDP per capita
 LDCs : low literacy rate  low revenue as large proportion of the people
are engaged in primary industries (low-paying jobs that do not require
much expertise eg. Agriculture / mining)
 eg. Sierra Leone has literacy rate of about 30% generating low income
as children are regarded as farm hands (lack of funds to build schools)
as well as civil war  GDP/capita of US$330
 Low education level hinders acquisition of technological skills and
employment in high-paying jobs  shortage of skilled labour hinders
industrialisation
 trend : more women are literate and are able to emphasise the need to
bring up healthy children who are educated  stronger influence on
development level
Population  LDCs like Sub-Saharan African countries believe in superiority of men 
rapid population increase in countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, Nigeria and
Bangladesh with an average of about 2.7-2.8% causing overpopulation
and strain on resources
 Large population and high birth rate hinder development as resources
are channelled for basic necessities like food, medicine and housing,
resulting in limited resources for economic development
 DCs : low population growth rate like Norway, Japan, Italy due to higher
cost of living, demands of bringing up children, career-minded parents
and change in lifestyle
 Low growth rates can cause problems with development as ageing
population may result due to reduction in availability of workforce,
limiting progress in industrialisation
 Ageing population : strain on working population as resources have to
be channelled to geriatric care instead of economic development eg.
Sweden, Germany, France, Japan, S’pore
Political factors

Conflict  usually in the form of war due to political issues which cause political
instability
 Cambodian civil war between the Sihanouk govt and Cambodian
communist movement; attempt to form Communist peasant farming
society cause economy to suffer; business disrupted as urban dwellers
force to migrate to rural areas; death of about 1.7 million Cambodians
under communist regime; Cambodia-ward torn and Angkor Wat in ruins,
prevent tourists from visiting the country  reducing development
(tourism industry and economy)
 Pakistan/Afghanistan : political instability due to being prone to terror
tactics with low GDP per capita of lesser than US$1000
 Sweden political stability and peace : very high GDP/capita : US$67,380
Leadership  Leadership defined as goal of the government of a country eg.
Implementing policies
 DCs tend to have a more stable and efficient government
 Eg. Norway with high GDP per capita of US$95,000/capita has a stable,
perceptive and forward-looking leadership which enforces the sharing of
the country’s oil wealth with citizens from imposing a profit ceiling on oil
producers
 Eg. China’s modernisation programme in late 1970s under effective
leadership of Deng Xioping as well as ‘open door policy’ that attracted
foreign trade and investments; China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial park
 LDCs : corrupt leaders in public administration with mis-management of
funds for personal gain; shooing foreign investors away, hampering
industrial development
 Eg. Nigeria, largest oil producer in Africa undeveloped with low SOL and
QOL with GNP/capita of only US$1405
 Eg. Corrupt and non-transparent administration in Myanmar as ruling
military Junta is also politically corrupt  GDP/capita : US$ 462
 CHAPTER 3 : STRATEGIES TO ALLEVIATE UNEVEN DEVELOPMENT
LORMS – National strategies
Strategy Advantages
Improving  41% live in slums and more than 25% do not
water and have toilet facilities in Ahmedabad
Sanitation  Parivartan Slum Networking Programme
Facilities established in 1990s
(India)  Local authorities and business institutions
worked together to improve living conditions by
upgrading these slum with financial support from
local banks
 Upgrading of basic infrastructure like clean water
supply, underground sewerage and individual
toilets
 Benefited more than 5600 people in 40 slums
 Programme expanded to benefit 59 more slums
 Death rate dropped from 6.9/1000 to 3.7/1000 
increase in SOL
Improving  Thai government recognised that improving
Education education of people especially in hill tribes in the
Standards less developed regions can improve living
(Thailand) standards
 “Hill Tribe Education Project” started in 1998 :
Hill tribe communities are taught Thai language,
Math, life and social skills in newly-built village
community learning centres by volunteer
teachers from the city areas
 Education has made them more productive
farms, with some managing to find jobs in cities,
thus increasing their income and their living
conditions
Population  China’s population was increasing rapidly in the
control (China) 1960s, which was a hindrance to its
development
 “One Child Policy” introduced in 1979 to limit
population growth
 disincentives introduced to discourage couples
from having more than one child
 family planning was very aggressive and
penalties are strictly enforced
 Volunteers recruited to promote late marriage,
late childbearing and use of contraceptives to
keep birth rate low
 Fertility rate dropped from 5.8 in 1970 to 2.1 in
1991
Disadvantages
 People may not know how to use
the new infrastructure properly,
which can cause its damage.
 Slums are still the same, just that
they have improved infrastructure.
There is still overcrowding, which is
still not improved.
 Limited success as only hill tribes in
the more accessible villages benefit
 Hill tribes in remote areas are
difficult to reach due to
geographical barriers and lack of
transportation links
 Communication barriers between
hill tribe people and volunteers from
cities
 However, aggressive policy was
faced with resistance from farming
societies where children are farm
hands and traditional Chinese
favoured boys
 Invades into private lives of citizens
 Ageing population – By 2050, China
may have 100 million people aged
above 50, putting a great strain on
its financial resources for elderly
care
Job Creation  In 2000, there were 4.3 million poor families, most of
and Financial which are poor farmers living in rural areas.
Assistance  In 2001, KALAHI Project was started to improve the
(Philippines) standard of living of the poor
 Increases employment rates and incomes of the poor
 Implement pro-poor policies to help people set up
and run small businesses (small loans given to small
businesses to help them grow and develop)
 Some private organisation provide financial aid for
the poor
 Villages who want to set up own businesses can
attend training causes on leadership and self-
employment as skills training as well
 Project benefited 3 million people, created 600
thousand agricultural jobs and 1.7 million jobs
through job placement schemes for the unemployed.
 Poverty rates dropped and people have income so
they can afford basic necessities.
LORMS – International agreements and organisation
Strategy Advantages
World Bank  Countries committed to provide aid to reduce
poverty in the world
 Help LDCs grow economically and socially
 Provide loans at low/no interest
 Eg. Benefited more than 34 000 villages across
Indonesia
 Eg. Sleepy Tirtomoyo Village (severe lack of
water) : used financial aid to dig an underground
well with rented machines and installation of
pipes now villages have clean and reliable
water supply  irrigation  increase crop output
too
Asian  Aimed to reduce poverty improve QOL of people
Development in the Asia-Pacific region
Bank  Financial support provision to improve economy
and increase development
 1994 : provide financial assistance to
Bangladesh to finance its Jamuna Multipurpose
Bridge project to link less developed
northwestern region to better developed eastern
regions
 Aid has been effective as traffic congestion
eases, road and rail transport becomes more
efficient and accessibility between rural areas
and the city of Dhaka increases
UNMDG  Aimed to alleviate uneven development by
helping people to get out of poverty
 Issues addressed : poverty, hunger, disease
 Promote : gender equality, education,
environmental stability
 More still needs to be done to
narrow the income gap
between the rich and the poor
 Need to diversify products and
skills of the poor
 Need to provide the poor with
greater access to the market
 Need more financial institutions
to volunteer to be part of the
microfinance programme
Disadvantages
 Aid was meant for selected areas
only and has little impact on
eradicating poverty at a national
level.
 Not all villages can be helped as aid
in the form of machines and
equipment due to difficulties faced
in reaching remote and inaccessible
villages due to physical barriers and
lack of transportation links.
 Loans given have to be returned
with interest within a certain time,
resulting in limited capital available
for economic developed as they
have to be channelled for debt
repayment
 Aid to remote villages hampered by
inaccessibility due to physical
barriers and poor transportation
links
 Universal education for all children
hampered by entrenchment in
  In 2006, 1.1 billion people live in extreme traditional and cultural beliefs of
poverty superiority of mean and children
 Vietnam : no of cases of extreme poverty being regarded as farm hands (eg.
dropped Sub-Saharan countries)
 Vietnam : people living in extreme poverty
dropped from 58% to 24% from 1993 to 2004
 Strategies in Vietnam include skills training
enabling the poor to look for better-paying jobs,
increasing access to basic services, educational
campaigns to create awareness of poverty and
putting pressure on govt to create jobs
 Globally, world hunger dropped by 25%
 % of enrolment increased from 72% in 1999 to
89% in 2004 in South East Asia
UNCLOS  Introduced in 1982, adopted by 160 countries  Some neighbouring countries may
 To control usage of resources in oceans to not abide by UNCLOS
ensure sustainability  Many coastal countries take
 To exercise sovereignty of countries over their advantage of the dilemma of land-
territorial waters with the right to fish, conduct locked countries and exploit their
research etc from 200 nautical miles situation by imposing high port
 EEZ : prevents local fisherman from fishing in charges, thus increase the transport
territorial waters of foreign countries, to minimise cost and reducing their profitability
risk of decline in fish stock in trade.
 Larger fishing boats from DCs had more
advanced equipment so they could travel a
longer distance and spot fish more easily, so
poor fisherman from Peru was disadvantaged
 EEZ protected waters off the coast of Peru 
DCs cannot fish in Peru’s waters
 Assures landlocked countries of their right to
access seas through territory of coastal
neighbouring countries
 Effective as many land-locked countries reaped
economic benefits