5.1 Development opportunities

Question 1

When we look at human development, it overlaps a lot with the study of globalisation. Can you outline some of the overlaps?

Answer 1

Both topic areas are concerned with economic disparities and the factors that can reproduce or reduce them.

The financial flows that allow global systems to operate also transfer wealth between places in ways which narrow or exasperate different kinds of development gaps.

Question 2

define the development gap?

Answer 2

A term used to describe the polarisation of the world’s population into ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. It is usually measured in terms of economic and social development indicators. development gaps exist both between and within states and societies.

Question 3

what is human development?

Answer 3

Human development generally means the ways in which a country seeks to progress economically and to improve the quality of life for its inhabitants.

Question 4

how is human development measured generally and with one specific example?

Answer 4

A country’s level of development is shown firstly by economic indicators of average national wealth and income but encompasses social and political criteria also.

The ‘development cable’ diagram shows the development process as a complex series of interlined outcomes for people and places. In summary, it shows that in an economically developed socity:

-Citizens enjoy health, a long life and an education that meets their capacity for learning.

-Citizenship and human rights are more likely to be established and protected.

Question 5

talk about the 17 sustainable development goals?

Answer 5

The UN’s 17 sustainable development goals were introduced in 2015. They replaced and extended the Millennium Development Goals which were a set of targets agreed upon in 2000 by world leaders.

Both the SDG and the earlier MDG provide a ‘roadmap’ for human development by setting priorities for action.

Some individuals or societies may not. be in favour of particular ones such as Goal 5 (gender equality) and 13 (climate action) because of their own perspectives on these issues.

The SDGs also interlink with the three strategic focus areas of the UN Development Program:
1) sustainable development.
2) democratic governance and peace building.
3) climate and disaster resilience.

Question 6

why is it important to distinguish between the valididity and reliability of different human development indicators?

Answer 6

Human development is measured in many different ways using both single and composite (combined) measures. When assessing the value of different measures it is helpful to distinguish between issues of validity and reliability.

Question 7

what does it mean for a measure to be valid?

Answer 7

there should be broad agreement that it has relevance. Do you agree that political corruption should be used as a measure of development, for instance?

Question 8

what does it mean for a measure to be reliable?

Answer 8

To be reliable, a measure must use trustworthy data.

Question 9

What are the three important human development indicators you should be able to explain and evaluate?

Answer 9

Income per capita
Human development index
Gender inequality index

Question 10

explain income per capita as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 10

-Income per capita is the mean average income of a group of people. It is calculated by taking an aggregate source of income for a country, or smaller region, and dividing it by population size to give a crude average.(which can give a misleadingly high ‘typical’ figure if large numbers of high-earners inflate the mean).

• Per capita gross domestic product (GDP) is one of the most widely used proxies for this. It is the final value of the output of goods and services inside a nation’s borders.

Question 11

explain human development index as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 11

The HDI is a composite measure. It ranks countries according to economic criteria (gross national income per capita) and social criteria (life expectancy and literacy).

it was divised by the United nations development program and has been used in its current form sicnce 2010.

The three ingredients are processed tp 0 and 1. Norway was ranked in first place (0.944) and Niger was ranked last (0.337).

Question 12

explain gender inequality index as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 12

The GII is a composite index devised by the United Nations. It measures gender inequalities related to three aspects of social and economic development.

Its ingredients are reproductive heath (measured by maternal mortality ratio and adolescent birth rates), empowerment (measured y parliamentary seats occupied by females and the proportion of adult females and males aged 25 years and older with some secondary education.

Question 13

evaluate income per capita as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 13

There is a near-universal agreement that it is perfectly valid to study income levels as a part of enquiry into human development.

Recording DGP reliably is not always possible though. The earnings of every citizen and business need to be accounted for, including informal sector work. Also, to make comparisons, each country GDP is converted into US dollars. However, some data may become unreliable because of changes in currency exchange rates.

Question 14

evaluate human development index as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 14

The three ingredients of the HDI – wealth, health and education – are widly regarded as valid indicators of development. All goverment vaue wealth and health, while the education of citizens plays a curcial role supporting these and other goals.

Literacy and life expectancy information is not always easy to record reliably. In recent years, millions of people have been displaced by human and/or physiclal induced distasers such as conflic in Syria or Drought in the Horn or Afria.

Question 15

evaluate Gender inequality index as one of the important human development indicators?

Answer 15

Internationally, views differ on the viability of gender inequality as a development measure. Indeed, some states do not allow women to stand for election for parliament, including Kuwait. Cultures that are unlikely to support equal rights for women are unlikely to value GII as a valid development measure.

Collecting reliable data on labour force participation rate may be tricky due to the numbers of women who work in the informal sector or under ‘zero hour’ contracts.

Question 16

talk about empowering women and indigenous or minority groups are a method of human development?

Answer 16

In addition to uneven human development that can be mapped at the global scale, disparities often exist between different groups of people within individual countries.

Social disparities in wealth, access to education and political freedom may persist in many states. Women, Indigenous people and minority groups are disproportionally affected.

Question 17

talk about some affirmative action in support of women’s right to an education?

Answer 17

When she was shot by a Taliban gunman in 2012, Malala Yousafzai was actively campaigning for the right of girls to attend schools in the Swat Valley region of Pakistan. The campaign of violence against girls attending school meant that many had been denied an education, despite it being a fundamental right for the citizens of Pakistan.

She has since become a symbol of resistance against terrorism and th persistence of extreme social views that would deny a woman an equal right to education.

Question 18

what are some efforts born out of Malala Yousafzai situation at varying scales?

Answer 18

• Local schools in Pakistan’s Federal Administered Tribal Areas staged a day of action.

-Pakistans government has promised to improve the participation of girls in primary schools.

-Pakistan is committed to the new United Nations sustainable development Goals, which include targets for education and gender equality.

Question 19

Give your introduction for the case study called ‘affirmative action by TNCs to help close the development gap’?

Answer 19

Some of the world’s largest TNCs have taken affirmative action to try to protect the human rights of LGBT+ communities in some countries. A lack of equality for LGBT+ people can be viewed as an example of a development gap which – along with a lack of equality for women or minority ethnic groups – occurs sometimes within particular countries.

Question 20

Give some examples of actions by TNCs for the case study called ‘affirmative action by TNCs to help close the development gap’?

Answer 20

Many TNCs are headquartered in world cities such as San Francisco and New York. The academic Rica Florida has noted that global hubs such as these are often creative places where people are perhaps more open to new ideas and diversity.

Some of these cities’ technology and banking companies have led the way in trying to tackle prejudice in the workplace; a few have openly gay senior managers, including apples CEO Tim Cook.

Question 21

what is an example of where action has gone wrong for the case study called ‘affirmative action by TNCs to help close the development gap’?

Answer 21

However, when the US bank Goldman Sachs ran an LGBT recruiting and networking event at its Singapore office, a Singaporean government minister criticised the company for failing to respect local culture and context/ In Singapore – and many countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East – gay sex is still illegal.

Question 22

how can the affirmative action of the TNCs impact their work for the case study called ‘affirmative action by TNCs to help close the development gap’?

Answer 22

For TNCs with a strong record of promoting diversity in the work pace in the countries they originate from, it can be a challenge to maintain a consistent global diversity policy. Campaigning to hard for equality could also affect a TNC’s freedom to operate in some states; therefore affirmative action to tackle this development gap could become economically harmful.

The HSBC bank has made a statement about this issue: ‘We respect the law in countries in which we operate, but that does not prevent us from having a global point of view. And our global point of view is to be very strongly, very firmly on the side of diversity and inclusion.

Question 23

Sometimes governments and civil societies have taken affirmative action in support of LGBT+ rights too, can you talk about this as a contrasting scale to the TNCs for the case study called ‘affirmative action by TNCs to help close the development gap’?

Answer 23

Brazil implemented university admission quotas for poor and Black students a decade ago (2013), transforming the lives of hundreds of thousands of families seeking a better future.

Former Minister of Labor and Employment Luiz Marinho has now announced his intent to create specific hiring quotas for transgender (2%) and Indigenous people (2%). He also wants to increase the positions for Black and mixed-race Brazilians to 45%, and 6% for people with disabilities.
(2023)

Question 24

what are social entrepreneurship approaches to human development?

Answer 24

In order to eradicate poverty, strategies are required which can help people 1) develop capabilities ad skills, and 2) find money to invest in technology or other resources needed to help them prosper economically. A broad mix of development strategies exists to help communities achieve these gaols. Collectively they are called social entrepreneurship approaches to human development.

Question 25

what are the two examples of soical entrepreneurship approaches to human development you need to be aware of?

Answer 25

Microfinance organizations and ehical traing initiatives.

Question 26

talk about Microfinance?

Answer 26

Small loans of money to low-income borrowers are termed microloans. The theory behind this approach is that it will promote entrepreneurship, increase income in the long term and raise communities out of poverty effectively.

Question 27

Why are microloans needed?

Answer 27

Microloans are needed because many subsistence farmers find it hard to escape poverty. They alck capital because they can only grow enough food for their own needs. The seeds they use do not always yield good enough crops. The soil they plan them in may not be fertile. This is where microloans come in.

Question 28

give an example of microfinance in action?

Answer 28

The best-known provider of microloans in the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. It has lent money to 9 million people, 97% of whom are women.

This gendered pattern of lending dates back to the bank’s early days in the 1980s, when it found that women had higher repayment rates and tended to accept smaller and less risky loans.

Question 29

what is the consequence of a gender pattern in microloans?

Answer 29

Subsequently, many microcredit institutions have used the goal of empowering women to justify their their disproportionate loans to women.

In contrast to the billions of dollars lent to countries, microloans involve just a few hundred dollars. But they can play a crucial role in jump-starting development at a local scale.

Question 30

does microloans always work?

Answer 30

Microloans are not an unqualified success story, however…

Some studies show mixed results and there is evidence of leading sometimes being more effective in helping an existing business prosper rather than helping new ones get established.

Loans have been used in some cases to purchase farm technology that reduces the need for farm labour, and so creates unemployment, thereby driving other people back into poverty.

Question 31

talk abut ethical trading initiatives through the example of fair-trade ?

Answer 31

The aim of fair trade is to give producers a fair fixed price for the goods they produce. If the global price for a particular crop like coffee collapses, Fairtrade farmers will continue to receive a steady income which safeguards their quality of life.

Question 32

How does fiar trade work?

Answer 32

The venture succeeds because a sufficient number of shoppers in high-income countries have increased what they spend on Fairtrade food over time.

Shoppers are motivated by 1) a sense of ethics and 2) genuine curiosity about the provenance (origin) of the goods they buy.

Some consumers are happy to pay a little more, knowing that a higher proportion than usual of the bill will find its way directly into the pay packets of some of the world’s poorest people.

Question 33

Give an example of where fair trade has been a sucess?

Answer 33

The benefits of the Fairtrade system can be shown using the example of a village called Chagelen in the northeast Punjab province in Pakistan.

In its promotional literature, Fair Trade explains how 18-year-old Sameena Nyaz, like many other people in Chagelen, belong to a fairtrade collective.

Sameena stitches Fairtrade footballs for a living. Although she did not attend school, her younger sisters are able to because of the enhanced family income.

Chagelan villagers belong to a health-care scheme that is paid for by the Fairtrade system; social development goals are being met in Chagelen alongside higher earnings and wealth creation.

Question 34

what are the draw backs to Fairtrade and the scale it can operate at?

Answer 34

As the number of schemes grows, it becomes harder to ensure that the money and benefits have been correctly distributed to all growers and manufactures.

It is simply not possible for all the world’s farmers to join a scheme offering a high fixed price for potentially unlimited crop yields. If a guaranteed price was offered to anyone who wanted to grow an unlimited number of bananas, the system would collapse.

Question 35

how is TNC’s social responsibility framework and global agreement and opportunity for human development?

Answer 35

Large businesses increasingly accept the need for corporate social responsibility. The largest TNCS have thousands of suppliers to whom they outsource work; this increases the risk of 1) the violation of the worker’s human rights and 2) brand products becoming associated with workforce exploitation.

Question 36

what are some TNCs implementing corporate social responsibility?

Answer 36

Mayor TNCs such as Dyson and Apple have strict codes of practice which prohibit worker exploitation in 1) the offshore facilities which they actually own and 2) their first tier of outsourcing suppliers. A code of conduct guarantees certain rights for employees and may cover legal areas such as maximising the number of hours an employee is required to work each week.

Question 37

what is an example of where a mayor of TNC was unable to act on corporate social responsibility?

Answer 37

Apple learnt in 2011 that workers for its iPhone touchscreen supplier, Lianjian Technology, had been poisoned by a chemical cleaning agent. Apple was unaware of the working conditions at Lianjia because it is a third tier supplier.

Large TNCs generally do not monitor the lower tiers of their own supply chains; indeed, it may be almost impossible for TNCs to monitor the work and pay conditions for the workforces of every single outsourcing supplier that is part of their extensive global production network.

Question 38

The Accord on fire and Building safety in Bangladesh is a significant recent development that shows TNCs taking greater responsibility for working conditions int heir supply chains, care to talk about it?

Answer 38

It was introduced following the collaps of the Pana Plaza building in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2013.

This led to the death of 1,100 textile workers. On the day of the collaps, workers were snt back into the building by Rana Plaza’s managers. to complet intermational orders in time for divivary. Wal-mart, Matalan and other major TNCs regilary outsocured clothing orders to rana Plaza.

Question 39

what was the after effect of the Rana Plaza TNC insident?

Answer 39

Since then, many European TNCs have signed the Accord, which is a legally binding agreement on worker safety. These companies now promise to ensure safety cheks are carried out regularly in all Bangladesh factories that supply them with cloths.

Many TNCs that outsource work to Bangladesh have however not singed up yet. despite the fact that the accord will result in as little as 2 cents being added to the production cost of a t-shirt. profit maximisation dominates the decision-making of the non-signatory companies.

Question 40

what are your evaluation, synthesis and skills for this subunit?

Answer 40

How views may differ on which aspect of human development and rights are most important.

How human development is supported by the actions of stakeholders at diffrent geographic scales.