Changing economic world - Jamaica Flashcards
How has tourism benefited jamaica - Economy
- Tourism accounts for 34% GDP in 2019 (before Covid)
- Earns £2 billion a year in tourist revenues
-Is the largest source of foreign exchange
-Development has also led to improved infrastructure: Roads, power etc., and environmental conservation through ecotourism and national parks with entry feeds to pay for the conservation
How has tourism benefited jamaica - Employment
- Employs 300,000 people directly and indirectly
- Direct: Jobs in hotels, transport & tourist attractions
-Indirect: Jobs in shops, restaurants, manufacturing and banking
Multiplier effect: Help boost the economy through local spending in shops and on services
- Closes the gap with skills development helping locals find future employment
How has tourism benefited jamaica - Infrastructure
- Investments are centred at tourist hotspots. The north coast saw a new port and cruise liner facilities together with new hotel accommodations being built
-Which attracts other foreign investors to the area (e.g. tour operators)
-Narrows the gap as more tourists are attracted to the area which generates more jobs which in turn boosts the economy
How has tourism benefited jamaica - Quality of life NEGATIVES
- In northern tourist areas (Montego Bay and Ocho Rios), wealthy Jamaicans have a high standard of living
-Large numbers of people still live in poverty, with poor housing, limited food supply and inadequate access to fresh water, health care and education
-25% of hotel workers are laid off during the low season with no income to support them from May to November
How has tourism benefited jamaica - ENVIRONMENT
Disadvantages: Footpath erosion, excessive waste and use of water, harmful emissions
Advantages: Conservation & landscaping, water treatment to reduce pollution from hotels,
ecotourism developments: Raft trips to River Rio Grande where tourists are in small groups on manpower boats to reduce the environmental impact
Strategies to reduce development gap
trategies used to reduce the development gap include:
Investment:
Where countries and TNCs invest money in LICs which provide employment and income
Example: Chinese companies investing in Africa (mainly energy, mining, construction and manufacturing)
Industrial development:
Brings employment, higher incomes and opportunities to invest in housing, education and infrastructure
This has a multiplier effect
Example: China’s move away from agriculture to manufacturing made it one of the fastest growing economies in the world
Freetrade:
This is top down approach where countries do not charge tariffs and quotas between themselves, this encourages trading free of taxes and charges and can be beneficial to LICs
Tourism:
Some countries have become tourist destinations
Which leads to investment and increased income
Infrastructure is improved and direct and indirect jobs created
Tourism can become vulnerable during a recession
Aid:
Countries or non-governmental organisations (NGOs such as Oxfam) donate resources to a country to help or improve people’s lives
Aid can take the form of money, emergency supplies, food or technology, specialist skills
Helps reduce the development gap through investing in development projects
Focus is usually on health care, education and services
Example: Goat Aid helps families to buy goats which produce milk and meat
Intermediate technology:
This is where suitable/appropriate and sustainable projects, equipment and ideas are used
These are fitted to the needs and wealth of a local community
Example: Micro-hydro for the remote villages of Nepal which the community build and maintain
Provides enough electricity to improve life for the villagers: enables children to study at night, families to watch TV and use mobile phones and the internet
Fairtrade:
International movement that helps producers in poor countries get a fair deal by setting standards for trade
Farming is done in an environmentally friendly way
Product has a better position in the global market
Part of the end price is invested back into the local community and future development projects
Example: Over 90% of small coffee farmers in eastern Uganda have joined the Gumutindo Coffee Cooperative which allows the coffee to be milled before roasting, which adds value to the coffee and increases the farmer’s income
Debt relief:
Many LICs borrowed money to develop their economies during the 1970s and 1980s
Some of these countries have fallen into serious debt and are unable to pay back these loans because of the high rates of interest
In 2006, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to cancel the debts of 19 of the world’s poorest countries
This money saved in debt can now be used for development projects such as industry, resources and infrastructure
But corrupt governments may keep money
Example: Ugandan government has spent money to provide safe water to over 2 million people
Microfinance loans:
Small-scale financial support for small start-up businesses and usually aimed at women to help them to become more self-sufficient
Example: Grameen Bank, Bangladesh was set up in 1976 to help local women to use their skills to develop small businesses. Initially the bank lent women money to buy mobile phones, which the women then charged villagers to use the phone, giving them a small profit, but also enough to repay the loan
