Transcript The North-South Gap - University of Maine System

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The Global North- The group of advanced industrialized countries
(e.g. rich countries), which happen to be, by in large,
concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere. The United States,
Europe, Canada, New Zealand, Australia.
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The Global South- A diverse set of countries that have not yet
achieved the level of affluence seen in the Global North.
Countries in the Global South range from middle income
countries such as Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico to impoverished
countries such as Malawi, Haiti, and Bangladesh. Countries in
the Global South are sometimes called “less developed
countries” (LDCs), “third world countries”, or “developing
countries.” Most people on the planet live in the Global South,
About five billion people live in the Global South.
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“The global North-South gap between relatively rich
industrialized countries of the North and the relatively poor
countries of the South is the most important geographical
element at the global level of analysis” (Goldstein and
Peveouse 2014, 23).
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One billion people on the planet live in abject or extreme
poverty (the World Bank defines extreme poverty as living
on less than $1.25 a day).
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15,000 African die each day from preventable diseases,
such as TB, Malaria, and HIV.
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2.5 billion people do not have access to basic sanitation
facilities (such as sewers).
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More than 800 million people on the planet are chronically
undernourished.
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In 2000 the UN adopted the Millennium Challenges Goals.
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
There are 8 MCG Goals:
o 1. Eradicate extreme hunger and malnutrition
o 2. Achieve universal primary education
o 3. Promote gender equality and empower women
o 4. Reduce child mortality
o 5. Improve maternal health
o 6. Combat HIV, malaria and other diseases
o 7. Ensure environmental sustainability
o 8. Create a global partnership for development
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There has, in fact, been notable progress made on a number of
the Millennium Challenge Goals (MCGs).
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The MCG to cut extreme poverty in half by 2015 was actually
achieved in the year 2010, five years ahead of schedule. (This
goal was part of MCG #1)
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Infant tetanus deaths have been cut in half
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Clean drinking water has been extended to a billion more people
that had access in 1990.
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Polio has been virtually eliminated
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In fact, it looks as though most countries in the Global South (or
developing world) are seeing some advances in terms of
economic progress.
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However, about one billion people (concentrated mostly in Africa,
but also South Asia) remain trapped in grinding, abject poverty.
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Global economic inequality remains astounding. The richest one
percent of the world’s population holds over 40% of total global
wealth (Credit Suisse Research Institute 2013). The richest 500
individuals have a combined income that is greater than 416
million of the poorest individuals.
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Why are the rich countries so rich and the poor countries so
poor?
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Dependency theory emerged in the 1970s to answer the
question, why are the rich countries so rich and poor
countries so poor?
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Dependency theorists argue that a history of colonial
exploitation allowed rich countries to achieve staggering
levels of affluence and wealth, while at the same time, and
as part of the same process, led to the “underdevelopment” and severe economic deprivation that
characterizes much of the Global South.
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Europe colonized most of the world at one time or another.
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Imperialism structured the world around master and slave,
conquered and conqueror.
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Imperialism and colonialism are based on racist beliefs of
racial superiority and inferiority.
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Imperial powers colonized countries, and shamelessly and
violently exploited the land and people living in those
colonized countries.
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Social exploitation- “Being colonized has a devastating
impact on a people and culture. Foreigners overrun a
territory with force and take it over….The inhabitants are
forced to speak the language of the colonizers, to adopt
their cultural practices, and to be educated at schools run
by their guidance. The inhabitants are told that they are
racially inferior to the foreigners” (Goldstein and Pevehose
2014, 449).
Economic Exploitation- resources and minerals are dug up
and shipped out for the profit of the imperial (colonizing)
power. Infrastructure is developed to take resources out of
the country, rather than create a vibrant, diversified, and
dynamic internal domestic economy.
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Neocolonialism: “The continuation of colonial exploitation
without formal political control”.
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Even though formal colonial rule has ended, many of the
same patterns of exploitation and dependency remain
intact.
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Can you think of some examples of how a history of
colonialism might continue to affect a country postindependence?
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(See the next slide…)
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Colonial legacies
o Even after the colonizing/imperial power leaves, the former colony (now an
independent country) continues to have an economy dependent on the export of a
single (or few) raw material (s) (bananas, coffee, cotton, peanuts).
o Even after the colonizing/imperial power leaves, the new independent country has a
transportation and communication infrastructure that was built to take resources out
of the country for the benefit of other countries (see Figure 12.9 on page 452 of your
textbook).
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Declining terms of trade
o Trading bananas for computers is not a good long-term growth strategy.
o Puts poor countries at a structural disadvantage in trade
o Raw materials are subject to big price fluctuations, making developing countries
highly vulnerable
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Enclave economy- Many formerly colonized countries have enclave economies,
where rich enclaves (pockets) of exporters exist, but these tiny rich communities are
surrounded by abject poverty in the rest of the country.
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Most former colonies are characterized by very levels of income inequality. (See
discussion in your textbook on page 452)
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“The Development of Underdevelopment”: The same
historical process that ‘developed’ the rich countries
(Imperialism) underdeveloped the poor countries.
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We, are politely referred to as "underdeveloped." In truth, we are
colonial, semi-colonial or dependent countries. We are countries
whose economies have been distorted by imperialism, which has
abnormally developed those branches of industry or agriculture
needed to complement its complex economy.
"Underdevelopment", or distorted development, brings a
dangerous specialization in raw materials, inherent in which is
the threat of hunger for all our peoples. We, the
"underdeveloped", are also those with the single crop, the single
product, the single market. A single product whose uncertain sale
depends on a single market imposing and fixing conditions. That
is the great formula for imperialist economic domination.
— Ché Guevara, 9 April 1961
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Dependency theorists focus on the Global South’s history of
being exploited through imperialism and colonialism to
explain global poverty and global economic inequality. After
reading Chapter 12 and carefully reading through this
Power Point, answer the following question:
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Do you find that Dependency Theory offers a convincing
explanation for global poverty and global economic
inequality? Why or why not?