Global development

• Development


  A term that measures how advanced a country is compared to another. It is about the standard of living in a country - whether people can afford the things they need to survive. However, it's not just about money. Development also includes the quality of life within a country.
• How a low-income country might develop

  • Investment in farming - higher yields to eat and sell
  • Electricity grid reaches rural areas
  • New roads or railways - connect remote areas with cities
  • Literacy rises - better job prospects
  • Gender equality improves
• Factors affecting human development of a country

  • Economic - personal wealth/ income, growth of economy, types of industry, cost of living, employment rate and job security
  • Food and water security
  • Social - access to health, education, housing, recreation
  • Technological - electricity, internet access, better farm/industry machinery
  • Cultural - democracy, work-life balance, traditional/imported culture balance
• Food security


  An imbalance between food production and food consumption means many countries lack food security. This means people lack: availability of enough food all the time, access to enough of the right food to stay healthy, knowledge to make the best use of what they have.
• One in nine people in the world do not have access to safe water. Approximately 2 million people die from water-related illnesses every year.
• Access to safe water kick-starts human development. Safe water improves people's lives as they are no longer too ill to work, children can go to school and women can work instead of spending all day fetching clean water.
• GDP (Gross Domestic Product)


  The total value of goods and services produced by a country in a year. It is often divided by the population of that country to give GDP per capita (per person).
• HDI (Human Development Index)

  Puts together a country's Gross National Income (like GDP per capita), life expectancy and average years in education to produce an indicator of the country's development level.
• Corruption Perceptions Index


  Grades the quality of governments from 'highly corrupt' to 'very clean'.
• All measures of development show averages only and data do not show everything and are not always accurate. For example, GDP doesn't include the cash economy.
• Gini coefficient


  A ratio from 0 to 1 that measures economic inequalities within a country. 0 = same income for everyone, 1 = one person has all the income.
• GDP per capita


  GDP divided by the population of a country, giving the average income per person.
• The general pattern shows higher GDP per capita tends to be found in countries in the northern hemisphere, with the USA having one of the highest GDP per capita at US$50000-60000. The lowest GDP per capita tends to be found in the southern hemisphere, especially in central Africa.
• In the UK the decline of industries (deindustrialisation) during the second half of the 20th century led to rising unemployment levels.
• While most people in more developed countries have easy access to clean water, many people in developing countries lack this, and are forced to walk miles to drink dirty, contaminated water. This leads to people contracting diseases like cholera, which lowers life expectancy.
• Literacy rates are low in the developing world, with few schools and poor attendance rates. People with the least education have the largest families, which can lead to debt and malnutrition.
• International aid


  Where one country voluntarily transfers resources to another country. It provides vital income for many poor countries, and helps reduce uneven global development. It can pay for imports, support the accumulation of capital to invest, and address a shortage of skills needed for development.
• Types of international aid

  • Official government aid
  • Voluntary aid
  • Multilateral aid
  • Bilateral aid
  • Short-term emergency aid
  • Long-term development aid
• Inter-governmental agreements


  Agreements made between two or more governments to cooperate in some way, such as trade agreements and fair trade.
• Foreign direct investment (FDI)


  When a company invests in a company in a different country, and has some control over what that company does. It brings in investment and big brands, but can also have negative implications like lack of regulation and environmental consequences.
• The HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) initiative was organised by the IMF and World Bank to reduce the amount owed by the poorest countries, helping to release some of their income to improve the lives of their residents.
• Top-down development happens through actions of governments and TNCs, while bottom-up development happens through actions of NGOs working with communities.
• Top-down development


  • Large-scale projects that aim at national-level or regional-level development
  • Very expensive projects often funded by international development banks
  • Sophisticated technology that needs experts to install and maintain
• Bottom-up development


  • Local-scale projects that aim to benefit a village or small group of communities
  • Very cheap compared to top-down, but usually funded by the community
  • Appropriate technology that local people can learn to operate and repair
• One of the advantages of bottom-up development projects is that they can be targeted at the specific needs of local people. On the other hand, the use of these projects can mean that the promotion of development is slow, because governments in poorer countries rely on the work of NGOs to develop solutions.
• India is a member of global groups including the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. It is the largest country in the Indian subcontinent and the second most populated country in the world with 1.31 billion people in 2015. It is the seventh largest country in terms of area.
• Over 80 per cent of India's population are Hindu, with other religions including Islam, Sikhism and Buddhism. India has the third-largest Muslim population in the world and its film industry, Bollywood, makes 1600 films a year, seen by 2.7 billion people.
• India's population is divided over 29 states, with social ranks known as 'castes' that divide India's society. Over 20 million Indians live outside of India.
• India is the largest country in the Indian subcontinent
• Regions where most of India's population live

  • Maharashtra
  • Madhya Pradesh
  • West Bengal
  • Bihar
  • Andhra Pradesh
  • Uttar Pradesh
• India is the second most populated country in the world - 1.31 billion people in 2015
• India is the seventh largest country in terms of area
• Religions in India


  • Hinduism
  • Islam
  • Sikhism
  • Buddhism
• India has the third-largest Muslim population in the world
• India's film industry, Bollywood, makes 1600 films a year, seen by 2.7 billion people
• India's population is divided over 29 states, with Rajasthan being the largest and Goa being the smallest
• India's social ranks known as 'castes', assigned at birth, divide India's society
• Over 20 million Indian diaspora (scattered groups) are located in approximately 100 countries
• India's globally-spread population generates income for its economy with money sent back (remittances)
• India experiences two monsoon seasons - the north-east monsoon occurs during the cooler months and the south-west monsoon during the warmer months