Development 1-4 Flashcards
Define the term development
Development is a branch of geography which refers to the standards of living and the quality of life of its human inhabitants
What are the economic indicators of development
GDP and GNP
What are the social indicators of development
Adult literacy rate, access to safe water, life expectancy at birth and infant mortality rate
Explain GDP
The total value of goods and services produced within a country in a year divided by the number of people
Explain GNP
The total value of all good and services produced within within a country divided by the number of people. GNP also includes the value of foreign investments and money made abroad it is also measured in $
Explain adult literacy rate
What percentage of the adult population can read and write.
Explain access to safe water
What percentage of the population have access to a safe water supply.
Explain life expectancy at birth
How many years you are expected to live in a country. Often divided into male / female
Explain infant mortality rate
The number of infant (under 1) deaths for every live 1000 births
What are the problems of using economic indicators
They are only an average figure and conceal differences that exist within a country or between urban and rural areas
When calculating GDP no account is taken of Subsistence Farming (farm to feed yourself) as this does not generate income, but is very important to the lives of millions of people in South East Asia
When considering GDP, no account is taken of what can be bought with that money. Can $1 actually buy more in India or in the UK?
Economic Indicators do not tell us about the real quality of life including the health or standards of living for a population
What are the problems of social indicators
They are average figures and they conceal Geographical differences or inequalities
Adult Literacy may conceal gender differences in countries where educational enrolment is higher amongst boys
It is difficult to measure and compare the quality of health care or education in different countries
