Showing papers on "Underdevelopment published in 1988"

The Tentacles of Progress: Technology Transfer in the Age of Imperialism, 1850-1940

Abstract: Daniel Headrick examines why the massive transfer of Western technology to European colonies did not spark an industrial revolution in those countries. Rather than spurring economic progress, he argues, the transfer of stock technology between 1850 and 1940 caused the traditional self-sufficient economies of the colonial regions to be stuck in a state of underdevelopment, a legacy which burdens these countries to this day.

The Roepke Lecture in Economic Geography Location Theory, Location-Allocation Models, and Service Development Planning in the Third World

Abstract: The absence of an integrated system of settlements providing services and facilities is often cited as a cause of underdevelopment in rural areas. Location-allocation analysis systems provide an explicit framework for diagnosing service accessibility problems, measuring the efficiency of recent locational decisions and the current levels of settlement efficiency, and generating viable alternatives for action by decision makers. Development objectives are realized only when these models are applied within a broader location theory framework in which the often antagonistic behaviors of the many actors are recognized.

Global politics in the human interest

Abstract: Third World underdevelopment, the declining influence of the superpowers, the economic strength of Japan and Western Europe, and global economic and ecological interdependence have transformed the world political agenda. This book provides tools for understanding the threats and the opportunities posed by this transformation. Addressing four interrelated global problems - underdevelopment, human right violations, the arms race and environmental destruction - it offers a planetary perspective on how world politics are being reshaped. The book utilizes a global-humanist framework of values and ideas for analyzing world political economy. It presents twelve country studies that illustrate global issues and it concludes with a redefinition of international security and specific ways that it might achieve.

Crime, Justice, And Underdevelopment: The Palestinians Under Israeli Control

Abstract: Orthodox theories of crime in the Third World and in regions of uneven economic development offer a unilinear explanation of the relationship between economic development and increased crime rates. Simply stated, this Durkheimian position views the transition from traditional to modern society as being associated with the weakening of mechanical forms of solidarity and the emergence of secular and impersonal role structures based on a complex division of labor. Universalistic and achievement criteria replace ascriptive and particularistic values, and deviance-derived social control models based on formalized coercive sanctions substitute for traditional and community-based forms of control. Anomic behavior, frustration of expectations, and norm violation are considered an expected, if transitory, outcome of social change, and are explained on the basis of a clash between modern and traditional value systems.

Black People in the British Empire: An Introduction

Abstract: The history of exploitation, oppression and underdevelopment perpetrated by British capitalism in the colonies is examined, starting with an account of the British invasion of Ireland in the 12th century and encompasses the Caribbean, India and Australasia. The author explains how the ideology of racism was an essential component in the acquisition and domination of large areas of the world, and how the need for markets for British manufacturers led to the de-industrialization and impoverishment of the colonies. The book brings to light the way that the immense profits derived from the triangular trade - including the slave trade - were used to develop British interests, enabling the Industrial Revolution to take place when it did. The book intends to show how and why this racism has been nurtured by those in power. Peter Fryer acknowledges the central role black people have played in British history. Peter Fryer has also written "Staying Power".

The underdevelopment of the informal sector: street hawking in johannesburg, south africa

Abstract: Within South African studies there has emerged a school of "urban research from below" stressing studies of the world of and economic existence of the "ordinary" or "common people" in the city. The present paper constitutes an exploration of the historical geography of the urban informal sector in South Africa, investigating the underdevelopment and changing complexion of street trading activities. The roots of a long-established tradition of state anti-street trader policies are examined, and the post-1976 policy shift from repression to tolerance of street traders is highlighted. The pattern of successes and failures of attempts by communities of black hawkers to invade areas ostensibly declared to be "white" urban space are chronicled.

Monopoly power and uneven development: Baran revisited

Abstract: Baran examined the implications of the rise in monopoly power in advanced economies for the underdevelopment in poor countries, and the process of uneven development on a world scale This article examines his work critically, and then presents a North‐South model which defines uneven development in a precise manner, and analyses the mechanism by which the rise in monopoly power leads to such uneven development It is shown that the process can work even without reference to imperialism, which is a central, but controversial, element in Baran's analysis

Underdevelopment in Two Norths: The Brazilian Amazon and the Canadian Arctic

Abstract: The developmental scholar Andre Gunder Frank has constructed a model to explain regional underdevelopment within developed nations. Underdevelopment is defined as the inability to control the rents from local resources and limited input into political decision making. The model is based on the concepts of metropolis and satellite, the satellite being a region that is politically, socially, and economically dependent on the metropolis, Frank applies this concept to the Brazilian Amazon as a satellite of southeastern Brazil and concludes that the Amazon region has underdeveloped due to the abrupt entry and withdrawal of capitalist investment. This article applies the Frank model to the Canadian North as a satellite of southern Canada and, using the historical examples of the fur trade, the Klondike gold rush, and the whaling and petroleum booms, concludes by noting that the entry and collapse of capitalist investment in the Canadian Arctic has led to a similar form of underdevelopment or dependency in that region. Underdevelopment and dependency in both regions are seen as a result of the collapse of economic, and primarily resource extraction, booms. Key words:n orthern development, underdevelopment, dependency, Andre Gunder Frank, colonialism, fur trade, Klondike gold rush, natural resources, politics

The Political Economy of Livestock Marketing in Northern Somalia

Abstract: The predominant form of economic livelihood in semi-arid Somalia is pastoral livestock production Two-thirds of the nation's population participate in the pastoral economy, and livestock-related exports account for more than 70 percent of Somalia's foreign exchange earnings in a given year In 1981, for example, 91 percent of Somalia's hard currency inflow came from the export of live animals During the last fifty years, however, the nature of the pastoral economy has changed significantly; the proportion of the Somali population in actual livestock production has declined while the proportion in circulation and trade has increased Consequently, seven different individuals, excluding the producer, now make a claim on each head of exported livestock before it is shipped out of the country1 This "over-circulation" of a single commodity without adding any value to that commodity (sheep and goats in this instance) symbolizes the underdevelopment of the entire Somali economy2 Dan Aronson underscored the need for a better understanding of the political economy of Somali underdevelopment in 19803 Eight years later, the literature suggests that no one has taken this urgent call to heart Our work represents an ongoing effort to address several of Aronson's concerns as well as to refine some of the contributions made by Jeremy Swift regarding the unequal commercial relationship between pastoralists and livestock merchants4 In the critical literature, underdevelopment constitutes at least three simultaneous processes: the creation of dependent Third World economies, their integration into the global market economy, and the restructuring and

Education and Revolutionary Transformation in Nicaragua.

Abstract: Since 1979, education has had a key role in promoting social change in Nicaragua. Toward that end, the education system is expected to contribute to: (1) the formation of a "new person," a more critically conscious and participatory citizen who is motivated by collective goals; and (2) the transmission of the skills and knowledge to overcome decades of underdevelopment and set the nation on the path of self-sustaining growth. This paper is a survey of education in Nicaragua before and after the revolution_ that overthrew the Somoza dynasty in 1979. During the Somoza period, half the nation was illiterate with mcre than three-fourths of rural populations unable to read or write. Like most Latin American countries, Nicaragua under Somoza provided extensive education at public expense to urban elites, but failed to provide more minimal primary education or even basic literacy to a majority of its citizens. The new regime, despite setbacks, constraints, and challenges posed by intensified external aggression against the Sandinista regime, has nevertheless carried out a successful national literacy crusade and a followup program of popular education for newly literate adults and youths. It still remains to be seen, however, whether the newly acquired skills and knowledge will contribute substantially to increasing economic productivity, better health, more adequate housing, and effective communal action. The reconstruction of the Nicaraguan education system is only beginning. (TE) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ******************************************************%*********X****** EDUCATION AND REVOLUTIONARY TRANSFORMATION IN NICARAGUA

Development of money and capital markets

Abstract: This paper reviews the prerequisites necessary for accelerating the development of money and capital markets in the context of developing economies of Europe, Middle East and North Africa. These countries feature a strong predominance of the banking sector that is mirrored by underdevelopment of money and capital markets. Such a situation restrains efficient mobilization and allocation of financial resources and in particular thwarts the supply of long term finance and equity. The author is Senior Financial Economist of the Economic Development Institute of the World Bank. Mr. Michael Warman carried out background research for. this paper and contributed with a series of notes. The author is grateful for comments from and the assistance of Mr. AW. Van Agtmael, Deputy Director of Capital Markets Department of the International Finance Corporation.This paper is one of a series of eight papers presented at a roundtable conference on Managing Financial Adjustment in Middle-Income Countries that was held in Istanbul in July 1987. The Economic Development Institute of the World Bank has published a report on the conference as number 11 of its series EDI policy seminar reports.

An operational analysis of the phenomenon of the other underdevelopment in the arab world and in the third world

Abstract: Our analysis here of the `Other Underdevelopment' is based on the premise that interaction between unequal partners tends to underdevelop the self-possessed resources and capacities of the dominated parties. Contemporary Western domination of the Third World is a classical case in point. This domination has not only led to the socio-economic underdevelopment of the African, Asian and Latin American countries, but it has also created among them a psycho-cultural underdevelopment: the `Other Underdevelopment'. The latter consists of two components: (1) cultural underdevelopment, and (2) psychological underdevelopment. Two examples are sufficient for illustration here. The widespread use of English and French during and after the British and French colonisation in the Third World has replaced or reduced (underdeveloped) the use and the promotion of native languages. The inferiority complex syndrome (self-esteem deterioration) toward the West has become a common feature among various groups of the developing ...

Developing Rights: The UN Declaration on the Right to Development

Abstract: On 4 December 1986, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 41/128 which contained the Declaration on the Right to Development. The Declaration was a further attempt by the United Nations to develop a normative regime to deal with one of the most pressing issues of our day – underdevelopment. It was a logical culmination of a movement that started with the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and continued through the period of the anti-colonial struggle. Once the right to self-determination was no longer challengeable as a political entitlement, attention shifted to its socio-economic corollary. In 1969, the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration on Social Progress and Development. The different UN Development Decades were also meant to address the problems of underdevelopment and the ever-increasing gulf between developed and developing countries. In 1974, a major attempt was launched by the UN General Assembly to change certain basic aspects of international law in the hope that this would lead to a new international economic order. Those efforts are yet to be substantially rewarded.

Survival and change in the Third World

Abstract: This book, designed primarily as a text for undergraduate and graduate students, provides a framework of ideas accessible and useful to anyone interested in problems of development and underdevelopment in the Third World. Based on the highly successful Open University Third World Studies course, the chapters cover the following major areas among others: theories of development; colonial expansion and colonial economies; the development of industry and agriculture; the influence of the world economy on Third World development. Survival and Change in the Third World focuses not only on industrial and agricultural production in Third World countries, but also on the people who are involved in making the economies function. With development issues impinging more and more upon established disciplines such as history, politics and sociology, it is expected that this book will provide the framework for further debate in the area of Third World studies.

Coercion and Incentives in African Agriculture: Insights from the Sudanese Experience

Abstract: A dialectic running through the literature on agricultural development in Africa is between coercion and incentives, between the necessity of compelling peasants to produce certain crops or employ particular technology and the possibility of motivating peasants to opt for specific production strategies through rewards. Coercion presumes peasants lack the capacity and or will to develop agriculture and must be forced. Incentives assume peasants will choose development if given the opportunity. Recent examples of coercionist approaches include Hyden (both 1980 and 1983), La-Anyane (1985), and Hart (1982:156-157). Recent examples of incentive-based approaches include Bates(1981), World Bank (1981), Brown and Wolf (1985), and Lele (1984). Both sides of this debate are seriously flawed. Policies based on them are unlikely to break the pattern of underdevelopment in African agriculture. In fact, past policies of coercion and incentives have contributed to present conditions. Current frameworks lack an appreciation of the ways in which African agriculture has already been transformed. They therefore underestimate the structural impediments to progress. This article calls for greater attention to the conditions and relations of production in African agriculture. Specifically, we must examine three factors. The first is the degree to which subsistence production has been undermined. This includes considering how dependent producers are on the market, to what extent out-migration has taken place and how far landlessness has spread. Second, we must look at the degree of control farmers have over production decisions. They may be restricted by such factors as competition for land with commercial growers, sharecropping and other land-tenure relations, lack of resources to provide inputs to agriculture, regulations of development projects or cooperatives, and/or by pressure to allocate resources to off-farm strategies (such as wage-labor) to meet household needs.

Librarianship: A Third World Perspective

Abstract: Among the problems that Third World countries face is the need to integrate education--especially programs that promote basic literacy--into the development process. Part of the challenge is to create programs in library and information studies that are not wholly derived from First World institutions and ideologies but spring from the needs of the very different societies they are intended to serve. In this book, Horowitz offers the first detailed assessment of the role of librarianship in a nation struggling to overcome underdevelopment. Through her systematic rethinking of the conceptual basis of library and information studies, she provides a practical synthesis that reconciles opposing views and establishes the validity of Third World perspectives in their own right.

Communication and Third World Development: A Dead End?

Abstract: PIP: The debate over the effects of communication on the development of the Third World goes back over 30 years. The mass media was supposed to teach the masses basic productive skills, complement formal education, and promote basic adult literacy. The theory was proposed that if you increase urbanization, literacy, and media participation in underdeveloped areas political and economic improvements would follow. In quantitative measures, much progress has been made in urbanization, literacy, and health care. However, the quality of life of the people in underdeveloped countries has not improved greatly. The mass media has often promoted capitalist ideals and values, and raised hopes beyond what the state could supply. Large transnational corporations advertising in these countries have introduced different ethical values and changed customer demand. This is seen as a threat by those countries to their cultural identity. Modernization has disrupted the traditional values and ways of life in many of these countries and increased the gap between the rich and poor. The dependency theory stated that development and underdevelopment were interrelated processes and effected all aspects of life, including political and economic aspects. In recent times, a new theory on the role of communication in development promotes an integration of traditional and modern methods to enhance the development messages. The culturalists believe the failure of the mass media in the past was the elitism of the modern media. The current theory is based on 2 concepts, 1 of intermediate technology and another appropriate technology. Intermediate technology is production by the masses, using the best knowledge and experience to serve the person, rather than making him the slave of machines. Appropriate technology aims at improving the quality of life of the people. communication must teach and promote the skills that will help people solve their problems in this new model.

TVA, Appalachian underdevelopment, and the post‐industrial era

Abstract: Shortly after World War II, the Appalachian coal industry underwent a dramatic transformation which, with hindsight, we can understand as part of a shift in the American economy from an industrial to post‐industrial economic base. A decade of change related to this transformation suggests that the post‐industrial era can create new forms of poverty, new forms of gender‐related inequality, and can exacerbate differences among regions and between rural and urban areas. This conclusion stems from the examination of the policies of the Tennessee Valley Authority from World War II to 1960 which stimulated changes in production processes, the work force and communities of coal mining regions that we now recognize as adverse consequences of de‐industrialization. The TVA's policies aggravated the negative consequences of economic transformation, including inducing competition among regions with depressed economies and surplus labor pools, a result which resembles the global economic competition of our own time. T...

Geography and the study of Third World underdevelopment re-revisited.

Abstract: PIP: Progress in development geography has been recently associated with the shift of the perspective on underdevelopment from a right-wing, conservative standpoint to a leftward, liberal-radical position. Marxism often conceals its message in obscure rhetoric with moral overtones on colonialism, slavery, poverty, and underdevelopment. Liberal academics have lamely acceded to the dogmas of this once-assertive ideology. Marxist view have exerted a stimulus on debates, but could not provide answers to the issues of this discipline. The hopes of development and prosperity a generation ago have evaporated only to be replaced by news of economic malaise, the food crisis, and crushing debt. In the late 1980's geographers addressed Third World environmental issues. Blaikie and Brookfield examined environmental deterioration among elements of the population-environment issue. Lewis and Berry dealt with African environments and resources. Watts and Bassett touched on agrarian and political concerns in West Africa. Adams examined water resources development in Nigeria's Sokoto Valley. Bryceson analyzed the political economy of agriculture in Tanzania. Lawson depicted how government policy bore on agriculture and its regional pattern. Crush detailed the absorption of Swazi labor into the South African economy. Dayal described the deficiency diet of agricultural workers in Bangladesh. Others examined Africa's financial disaster, Japan's trade surplus, and the global population crisis. Nevertheless, the dearth of output on and neglect of Third World issues by human geographers awaits positive research publications.

Analyzing development, dependency and underdevelopment: Suggestions for an alternative approach

Abstract: This paper reexamines sociological modernization theories of development and current theories of dependency and underdevelopment. It is argued that both sets of literature present one‐sided portrayals of social change in contemporary Third World countries. In place of these we propose an alternative dialectical approach. We suggest the way in which this approach integrates international political and economic emphases of the neo‐Marxist approaches with domestic socio‐cultural foci of modernization theory through examples from classic and contemporary studies.

Skill Transfer and African Development: A Conceptual Research Note

Abstract: It was a basic assumption of many development theories and policies that the transfer of technology would resolve the problem of African underdevelopment. This did not turn out to be the case. In fact, mass urban and rural poverty are on the increase in many African countries. This result is in part responsible for the current view that technology transfer ‘must concentrate more than in the past on meeting the requirements of the small farmer, small scale rural industry, the informal sector producer’.1. This ‘basic needs’ approach is not universally accepted. It is feared that this strategy would keep African countries in a permanent state of technological dependence, thus creating the danger of neo-colonialism.2