Geography- Development

Development- process of change to improve people's lives

MEDC- (More Economically Developed Country)- wealthy industrialised countries

LEDC- (Less Economically Developed Country)- poorer and more agricultural countries

Development Indicators: 

• Literacy Rate
• Population Density
• Car ownership
• Gross National Product* (GNP)
• % Population with access to clean/safe water
• Infant mortality rate
• % People employed in agriculture
• % People living in urban areas

GDP- (Gross Domestic Product)

The total number of goods and services a coutry produces.

Measured in $ worldwide-so it can be compared globally

Location- West coast of Africa, just above the equator.

Climate- Varied (very extreme) hot. wet, dry and monsoon.

Wealth: Rich in natural resources but still very poor country.

Absolute poverty- the minimum level of requirement for people to survive.

Relative Poverty- the economic inequality in the location/society in which people live

HDI- (Human Development Index) combines data on: GDP per capita (person) life expactancy, adult literacy rate, enrolment in education to give a score from 0-1.

The closer to 1, the most developed the country is

eg.     MEDC- 0.82

    LEDC- 0.4

0.8<-High Development

0.5-0.8- Medium Development

0.5>- Low Development

Development Gap- difference between the richest and poorest countries

Reasons for British Development:

• Historical- stable government
• Environmental- fertile farming soils
• Economic- lots of investment
• Social- NHS+Lots of doctors

Why is Ghana an LEDC?

• Ghana was a colony
• Land is being destroyed and cleared for farming
• Past political unrest
• HUGE debt

World Bank- joint bank owned by government from lots of countries

Debt- money that is owed and hasn't been paid off

Interest Rate- charge for taking loans, given each year as ....% of the loan.

Tariff- tax a government places on imports

Aid-help given to poorer countries

Bilateral Aid- one country gives aid to another country

Multilateral Aid- more than one country gives aid to one country

2 types of aid:

• Aid that trickles down- money back to rich country :(
• Aid that trickles up- money stays in the LEDC :)

Things that can go wrong with Aid:

• Donors can insist on unsuitable Aid
• Highly skilled personnel can be expensive
• Aid can undermine local producers

• Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
• Achieve universal primary education
• Promote gender equality and empower women
• Reduce child mortality
• Improve maternal health
• Compat HIV/Aids, Malaria and other diseases
• Ensure environmental sustainability
• Global partnership for development