conceptualising development
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Conceptualising Development. Sociology 352 January 12, 2007. Class outline. Thinking about the global south Philosophical roots of the concept of ‘development’ Ways of defining development How can development be measured?. Thinking about the ‘global south’. From Wednesday’s class: - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Conceptualising Development
Sociology 352January 12, 2007
Class outline
Thinking about the global south Philosophical roots of the concept
of ‘development’ Ways of defining development How can development be
measured?
Thinking about the ‘global south’
From Wednesday’s class: Varied conditions in different
countries and regions Factors to consider in development
Economic Social Political/governmental
Thinking about the global south
Terms: third world, less developed, underdeveloped, developing, global south, poor
1980 Independent Commission on Development Issues – Brandt Commission
Willi Brandt Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
“Global North” and “Global South”
North
SouthBrandt Line
Philosophical roots of the concept of “development”
Development emerged as a key area of government concern in the wake of the Second World War Development meant ‘modernization’ Concepts rooted in European post-
Enlightenment thought that emphasized: Progress Linear evolution Convergence with Europe and North America
Ways of defining development
As economic growth Development is the set of processes
which increase the value of a country’s economic output (GNP, GDP)
Development involves “modernization” of both technologies and social relations
Human welfare will improve as a consequence of economic growth
Ways of defining development
As meeting basic human needs Development is anything which
increases the number of people who can meet a minimum standard of nutrition, housing, health and education
Economic growth may or may not enhance this process, and may even contradict it
Ways of defining development
As empowerment Development means increasing
people’s abilities to govern their own lives and the array of choices they can make
“Underdeveloped” countries are those where individual rights and freedoms are curtailed
Very hard to measure and to quantify
How can development be measured?
Economic indicators: GNP or GDP per capita Poverty lines (e.g. dollar-a-day) Purchasing Power Parity
GNP per capita globally – published by the World Bank in 2000
How can development be measured?
Social indicators Adult literacy rate, life expectancy,
infant mortality – as proxies Basic-needs indicators
Human Development Index Human Poverty Index
How can development be measured?
Social indicators Adult literacy rate, life expectancy,
infant mortality Basic-needs indicators
Human Development Index Human Poverty Index
HDI measures circa 2003
GDP HDI
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
Costa Rica
Brazil
South Africa
Vietnam
Egypt
(UN Human Development Report 2005. http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2005/pdf/HDRO5_HDI.pdf)
.850
.800
.750
.700
.650
.600
2005 Human Development Report
10 Highest HDI Scores Norway Iceland (+5) Australia Luxembourg (+11) Canada (-1) Sweden (-4) Switzerland (+4) Ireland (+2) Belgium (-3) USA (-2)
10 Lowest HDIs Mozambique (+3) Burundi (+4) Ethiopia Central African
Republic (-2) Guinea Bissau Chad (-6) Burkina Faso Sierra Leone (+1) Niger (-1)
2005 Human Development Report by Region
Africa Seychelles 51 Libya 58 Mauritius 65 Burkina Faso 175 Sierra Leone 176 Niger 177
Asia Japan 11 Hong Kong 22 Israel 23 Bangladesh 139 East Timor 140 Yemen 151
Europe Norway 1 Iceland 2 Luxembourg 4 Albania 72 Ukraine 78 Moldova 115
North America Canada 5 USA 10 Barbados 30 Honduras 116 Guatemala 117 Haiti 153
Oceania Australia 3 New Zealand 19 Tonga 54 Vanuatu 118 Solomon Islands 128Papau New Guinea 137
South America Argentina 34 Chile 37 Uruguay 46 Paraguay 88 Guyana 107 Bolivia 113
How can development be measured?
Social indicators Adult literacy rate, life expectancy,
infant mortality – as proxies Basic-needs indicators
Human Development Index Human Poverty Index
HPI 1 and HPI 2
Human Poverty Index Scores 2004
Barbados 2.5 Cuba 5 Colombia 8.1 Mexico 9.1 Germany 10.8 Brazil 11.8 Canada 12.2 Australia 12.9 China 13.2 United Kingdom 14.8 USA 15.8 Saudi Arabia 15.8
Iran 16 Nicaragua 18.3 Ghana 26 South Africa 31.7 Papau New Guinea 37 Laos 40 Haiti 41 Bangladesh 42 Cote d’Ivoire 45 Malawi 46.8 Mozambique 49.8 Burkina Faso 65
How can development be measured?
Empowerment As project/intervention goal How to measure at an aggregate level
Political - Indicators of “Freedom”? Multiparty democracy? Non-government-controlled press? Human rights record?
A brief history of ‘development’
Considering both the ideas promoted and the types of projects that were introduced – and the political contexts that influenced them
Will look at legacies in more detail next week
A brief history of ‘development’
1945 to circa 1965: Modernization Idea of development born in context of post
war reconstruction, decolonization and the Cold War
Assumption of primordial causes of poverty Emphasis on economic and social
‘modernization’, overcoming tradition Economic growth as primary goal Large scale projects W . W. Rostow as key figure
Rostow’s Model of the Stages of Development
A brief history of ‘development’
1945 – 1965 Common terms:
Developed/developing countries Shortcomings
Social consequences and dislocation Environmental degradation Technology is not culturally neutral Ignored long term causes of inequality
and consequences of earlier capitalist development
A brief history of ‘development’
1965 – 1980: Underdevelopment Context of ongoing cold war,
liberation movements in the south and political turmoil in the north
Reaction to some shortcomings of modernization theories
Critical of growing poverty Strongly influenced by Marxist theory
A brief history of ‘development’
1965 – 1980: Underdevelopment Highlighted ahistorical models of
modernization thinkers to emphasize how poverty and inequality had been created and were central to capitalism and the global order
Key figures: Andre Gunder Frank, Walter Rodney
Common terms: Developed countries vs underdeveloped countries First world/second world/third world
A brief history of ‘development’
1965 – 1980: Underdevelopment Shortcomings
Tolerated authoritarian regimes that promoted social spending and agendas
Sensitive to class differences but not to gender Tendency to universal models ignored local
complexities and potentials Rarely considered environmental consequences Continued to favour large scale projects
A brief history of ‘development’
1980 – Present: Pluralism (and Discord) Context of fiscal crises of 1970s, growth of
neoconservatism, end of the cold war, environmental and feminist movements
For big financial agencies (IMF, World Bank) neoliberal ideas dominate – concern with balance of payments, international lending, enforcing fiscal austerity
For big international agencies (UN, UNICEF) primary concern for ‘development with a human face’, highlighting social inequities and consequences of neoliberalism
A brief history of development
1980 – Present: Pluralism (and Discord) Dramatic growth of NGOs (non-
governmental organizations) Growing emphasis on small scale projects Common terms:
Developed and less developed countries High income/industrialized/G8 countries
versus low income countries North and south
A brief history of ‘development’
1980 – Present: Pluralism (and Discord) Calls for new models of development
Women in development (WID) Participatory development Sustainable development Appropriate technology Globalization concerns Postdevelopmentalism